A friend of the Canadian Israeli peace activist who was just confirmed killed by Hamas on Oct. 7 said he fears his friend was burned to death — because “there’s almost nothing left of him.”
“She wasn’t killed, she was slaughtered,” spiritual counselor and author Susan Lax told The Post on Friday about her late friend, 74-year-old Vivian Silver.
Perak was initially believed to have been held hostage by Hamas when the terrorist group stormed his home in Kibbutz Be’eri in southern Israel on Oct 7.
Later on Monday, officials announced that Silver’s body had been identified as among those recovered from the devastated community.
“He might be burned to death. … There is almost nothing left from him,” lamented Lax, 65 years old.
Lax — who is Jewish and lives between Tel Aviv and New York City — said he had never witnessed anything like the unique horrors of the 41-day Israel-Hamas war.
Vivian Silver – who once helped Palestinians receive proper medical treatment in Israel – “may have been burned to death” October 7, a friend said.
“I’ve been through wars in Israel and terrorist attacks … and I’ve never experienced this,” he said emotionally.
Follow The Post’s live blog for the latest news on Hamas attacks on Israel
“I don’t think we can process it as long as there are more than 240 hostages sitting in a dark tunnel in Gaza and they haven’t seen the light for 40 days,” he added.
On Friday morning, Lax attended a birthday tribute in honor of Emily Hand, a 9-year-old hostage in custody on Friday, outside the home of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres in New York City.
“We had cake and held balloons, and we hope that when he comes back, he’ll see this and know he’s not forgotten,” Lax explained of the moving event.
People gather at a memorial service for Perak in Tel Gezer, Israel, on Thursday.Getty Images
Lax also attended a demonstration in honor of all the hostages outside Guterres’ residence last week.
Like Silver, Lax identifies as a peace activist — but admits that he is struggling in the face of anti-Israel protests in response to the country’s retaliatory bombing of the Gaza Strip.
“It is very painful to see hatred and evil against Israel, against Israel. It turned into a Jew hate movement,” he told The Post.
“I have been fighting for the Palestinian state since I can remember. … Where was everyone then?” he continued, referring to pro-Palestinian protesters who make demands at the expense of the state of Israel.
Mourners embrace at Silver’s emotional memorial service.Getty Images
“These people are shouting to wipe out Israel, to wipe out my people.”
He was also disappointed by more official responses, including the UN.
“How come the UN doesn’t condemn this? How can they be silent? It’s unimaginable,” Lax said of Guterres’ actions amid the conflict.
“We went to Gaza to protect our country. No other country in the world will sit there with terrorists on their doorstep,” he stressed.
“A call for a ceasefire [in Gaza] became louder than the call to condemn the genocide, and that’s where I had a hard time.”
A woman plays the flute as members of Women Wage Peace sing together at the Silver service.Getty Images
After decades of working for peace in the region, Lax said he was deeply saddened by the civilian deaths in Gaza.
“No child, no person, not in Gaza, should suffer because of evil and hatred. But I question what we are [Israel] need to do … Should we let it happen again?” he said, referring to another threat of Hamas invasion.
“This is not about freedom, this is not about justice and peace – this is about evil and hatred.”
Lax also lamented that Silver – who dedicated his time to helping Palestinians in Gaza receive proper medical care in Israel – should have “ended his life in such a way.”
He added that his own mother-in-law was an Auschwitz survivor and that his parents’ family had been killed in the Holocaust.
“Today, we know what happens when people are silent,” he said.
Demonstrators hold pictures of those believed to be held hostage by Hamas.AP
“People will forget that these precious souls [such as Vivian Silver] has been slaughtered.”
Lax will travel to Tel Aviv next week, he told The Post. He has not been in Israel since the war began.
“I know it doesn’t make sense [to go back],” he said.
But “there’s something … I need to be there,” he said. “I have family there, and I must hug them. I have a company there, and I must embrace my employees.”
Lax is the co-owner of an Israeli shoe company based in the northern part of the country, he explained.
Although much of the area has been evacuated due to threats from Hezbollah in Lebanon, he said workers still show up to work at the factory.
“Our shoes are shoes of peace, all religions work together, that’s what is possible,” he said.
“To find a way to give the Palestinian people the state they deserve, so we can live side by side.”
The company has sent thousands of shoes to more than 500,000 Israelis who have been displaced by the evacuation, he said.
“No one talks about them,” he said sadly.
Despite the daily struggles during the war, Lax said he still has hope for the future.
“I’m not a politician, I’m a peace activist, and I believe there are bright moments in every day,” he said.
“I’m a grandmother and a mother, and when my 11-year-old granddaughter asked my daughter, ‘Why does everyone hate us so much?,’ my daughter looked at her and said, ‘Because they don’t know us. , and they don’t know that we want peace in this world.’”
Some people have asked him if he is afraid or if he is worried that he will be a target when he speaks Hebrew in public.
“I’m not scared anywhere,” Lax said. “No one will scare me.”
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
