In a deeply emotional and symbolic moment, ZAKA volunteer Elishiv Buchbut returned to the Nova music festival site – where he had carried out sacred recovery work after the October 7th massacre – to hold the Brit Milah of his newborn son.

Elishiv, a member of ZAKA’s Sderot unit, was among the first responders who operated at the scene alongside the IDF Rabbinate. He spent days and months collecting the remains of the victims and other findings from the Nova compound, Route 232, and the site of the ambulance tragedy – fulfilling the sacred mitzvah of chesed shel emet.

This morning, Elishiv stood once again near the Nova stage. But this time, it was to name his son Amichai – “my nation lives” – and to recite the words “By your blood you shall live”, surrounded by family and fellow ZAKA volunteers.

ZAKA volunteer Ephraim Rosenfeld, who attended the ceremony, described it as:

“A moment of holiness and tears. As we stood by the main stage, we felt the weight of memory and the spark of hope. Our tears were prayers – for the return of the hostages, and in memory of those who were murdered here, sanctifying God’s name.”