October 7 · Personal story
Yarden Bibas
Abducted
October 7, 2023
Abduction location
Kibbutz Nir Oz
Current outcome
Released alive · February 1, 2025
Released alive after 484 days in captivity.
01
Life before
Yarden was born and raised in Kibbutz Tze’elim and later worked as a welder in Ashkelon. He liked making things, learning new techniques and improving his craft. He came to Nir Oz through his relationship with Shiri, and their family life grew around the kibbutz paths and neighbors. They married and raised two sons, Ariel and Kfir, with walks, Saturday picnics and time at the pool among their ordinary routines. The community remembers Yarden as caring and attentive, someone who looked after his family and made people laugh. Music and stand-up shows were among his pleasures. Shiri and Yarden were deeply connected to kibbutz life and wanted their children to grow up in that community. Their home also included a dog, Tonto. These family details preserve a life built from work, humor and shared time before it became known through the family’s abduction.
02
Abduction
At 9:43 a.m. on October 7, 2023, attackers entered the Bibas family home. Yarden tried to resist during a gunfight and was taken away first. Shiri, Ariel and nine-month-old Kfir remained in the safe room; a second group later abducted them. The family dog, Tonto, was killed. The community account distinguishes Yarden’s capture from the later abduction of his wife and sons, a separation that would define the family’s long wait. Images of Shiri holding the boys as they were taken spread widely, while Yarden’s family searched for information about all four. He entered captivity apart from the people with whom he had shared his home and daily routines.
03
Captivity
Yarden spent 484 days in captivity, mostly in tunnels, separated from Shiri, Ariel and Kfir. In the March 2025 60 Minutes interview, he described living through bombings underground, where blasts shook the earth and made him fear for his life. He said his captors told him that his wife and sons had been killed in an Israeli air raid, then forced him to appear on camera after telling him this. His account distinguishes what he was told in captivity from what became known about his family later. He also described repeated taunts: captors told him he could replace his wife and children. These are his recollections of psychological abuse. He returned without knowing the full facts about their fate.
04
Return
Yarden was released alive on February 1, 2025, after 484 days. At the time, the status of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir had not been resolved publicly. His release reunited him with his father and sister while he still hoped to see his wife and sons. He later learned that they had been murdered in captivity. Yarden’s release came first; the remains were transferred and identified later. On February 20, a transfer presented as Shiri’s remains was found to be another woman. Her remains were returned and identified on February 22. These dates describe the public identification process, not the dates when family members died.
05
Aftermath
On February 26, 2025, the family buried Shiri, Ariel and Kfir together in Tzohar. Yarden mourned the wife and sons he had hoped to see after his own release. In a 60 Minutes interview broadcast on March 30, he described the abuse he had endured in captivity and appealed for the release of his close friend David Cunio and David’s brother Ariel, who were still being held at that time. The brothers subsequently returned alive on October 13, 2025. His testimony joined his grief for his family with concern for people whose captivity continued after his own return.