Survivor lights torch, prays for hostages at Yad Vashem

Before kindling the flame, Fartouk offered a heartfelt prayer: “May all the hostages come home soon. Amen.”

By Joshua Marks, JNS

Holocaust survivor Gad Fartouk, 93, lit one of six memorial torches at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem on Wednesday night during Israel’s official state ceremony marking Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Held on the eve of Yom HaShoah, the event honored the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust and resonated deeply this year as the nation continues to grapple with the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas massacre and the ongoing hostage crisis.

Before kindling the flame, Fartouk offered a heartfelt prayer: “May all the hostages come home soon. Amen.”

According to Yad Vashem, Fartouk was born in 1931 in Nabeul, Tunisia, into a close-knit, observant Jewish family. His early life reflected the peaceful coexistence between Jewish and Arab neighbors—an atmosphere shattered by the Nazi occupation in 1942.

After his father was detained following Shabbat services, the family fled to Hamam-Lif, adopting false identities. His mother passed away during the war, and the family endured hunger, fear and separation until the German retreat in 1943.

Fartouk eventually immigrated to Israel in 1948, helping to establish Kibbutz Karmia, and later became a photographer in Ashkelon. With his late wife, Mona, he raised a large family—his way, he often says, of defying the Nazis.

This year’s ceremony was held under the theme: “In Their Deaths, They Commanded Us to Live: Bearing Witness, Remembering, and Rebuilding.”

Fartouk was joined by five other survivors chosen to light memorial torches: Rachel Katz, Arie Reiter, Felix Sorin, Monika Barzel, and Arie Durst.

In his remarks, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said:

“From this mountain of memory, Yad Vashem, we declare: We will not forget, we will not forgive and we will not remain silent. Not in the face of Hamas, not in the face of Iran, and not in the face of those who wish us harm—whether with missiles, machetes, or lies.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also addressed the ceremony, drawing a firm connection between the Shoah and the threats facing Israel today:

“Eighty years ago, the Jewish people were defenseless. Today, we are no longer helpless. The State of Israel is strong, the IDF is strong, and we will do whatever is necessary to return our hostages and defeat our enemies.”

The ceremony concluded with prayers led by Holocaust survivors Eva Erben and Yehuda Hauptman, including “El Malei Rachamim” and “Kaddish,” followed by the singing of Israel’s national anthem, “Hatikvah.”