The parents of Sharone Lifschitz, 52, were kidnapped from their kibbutz in Israel near the Gaza Strip last Saturday. The Israeli artist is closely connected to the Jewish Museum in Munich. She realized this, among other things Art project “Speaking Germany”: Excerpts from conversations that she had as a Jew with people in Germany have been read on the facade of the house since the museum opened in 2007. The fate of Sharone Lifschitz’s family has also caused great consternation there. In the interview, Lifschitz, who lives in London, talks about what happened. Above all, she explains what needs to happen to save not only her parents, but also the other people abducted by Hamas.
SZ: Ms. Lifschitz, your parents live in Israel. They have been missing since the Hamas attack last Saturday. Do you know what happened to them?
Sharone Lifschitz: My parents lived on a small kibbutz in the western Negev Desert, just about a kilometer from the Gaza Strip. They were there at their house on Saturday morning. Many rockets hit there. I think the last person who had contact with them was my uncle. My father told him that they could hear terrorists and gunshots. They wanted to go to the security room that their house has because it is close to the Gaza front line. We haven’t heard from them since. They were kidnapped as hostages by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
Even the security room didn’t protect them?
The Safe rooms are designed to be opened from the outside, it is not possible to lock the metal door from the inside. The rooms are intended to protect against rocket attacks. Nobody thought they had to deter terrorists.
Can you tell me more about your parents?
My mother is 85, she is on an oxygen machine when she sleeps. She and my father, who is 83, also need medication. They were founding members of the kibbutz, I think in the late 1950s. I grew up there. My father has worked for peace in the region his whole life. He speaks Arabic – maybe that will help him now. In retirement, he used his car to drive people from the Gaza Strip who could not receive medical care there to and from the hospital at least once a week. He always took cookies and fruit with him. My mother is a photographer. She has a great love for people. There were always a lot of guests in our house. But when the attack happened, my parents were all alone. But I don’t really want to speak on behalf of my mother or father. They would find it ridiculous because they are already old. They would want me to speak on behalf of the children who were victims of this attack.
What happened to the other members of the kibbutz?
It is a small kibbutz of about 400 people. Dozens of people there were killed – in the most cruel, barbaric way, by an organization that is at least as inhumane as the Islamic State. The worst possible atrocities happened here. Around 80 people were abducted along with my parents, including a nine-month-old baby, but also the teenage daughter of a friend of mine, who is autistic, along with her 80-year-old grandmother.
Are there survivors?
Between 150 and 160 people survived the day. You are now staying in a hotel. Some are in hospital, some are seriously wounded. They lost everything, everything. There is a large group of people from our community who care for them, provide clothing, the necessities of life, but above all who listen and comfort them. Because every family from our kibbutz has lost someone. There is not one family that is intact.
Excerpts from Sharone Lifschitz’s art project “Speaking Germany” can be read at the Jewish Museum in Munich. The Israeli artist had discussions with Jewish people in Germany.
(Photo: Stephan Rumpf)
They are now going public with these terrible events and have spoken to CNN and the British media. What do you want to achieve?
On Saturday morning our lives shattered. We have lost many people and our home – we don’t think we will ever be able to live there again. We have lost our sense of security. But that’s something we’ll deal with later. I won’t mourn now, now it’s about the living. We are in the middle of the action, in the middle of this hostage-taking situation. This is a terrible situation in which we must do whatever we can. We as a community from the kibbutz, but also as a human community around the world. We must all work together now to help those we can still help. If we can save some of the hostages, at least we’ve done something. We can’t bring her home – because her home no longer exists. But we can bring them back to their community, to their people.
What exactly are you asking for?
I want to keep the pressure on the political leadership. I ask every government – including the German one – to remind the Israeli government of its responsibility for its people. Israel wants to go to war and I think the country must take action against Hamas. But first politicians have to take care of the hostages. I want doctors to check on the hostages. We sent a medication list to the Red Cross. And then I want her release to be negotiated.
How do you see the role of the German government?
I think Germany has a key role to play here. Germany has participated in negotiations before and is very aware of its past. They have skills, they have a lot that they can bring to this situation.
Are you planning to go to Israel now?
My heart is there, I would travel there tomorrow. But we now work together as a collective, as a kibbutz. There are people who care about the survivors. I’m trying to raise awareness in the media. Together we work for humanity. I also think that the people in the Gaza Strip need to be protected, children, women. The attack on Israel is an act designed to make us hate, to paralyze and to fear. We must not let this hate win.