KKL-JNF leads commemoration efforts at Re’im Recreation Site

On the anniversary of the October 7 massacre, the KKL-JNF directorate, led by chairwoman Ifat Ovadia-Luski, allocated NIS 4 million to upgrade the Re’im Recreation Site in Be’eri Forest, where the Nova music festival was held. There, 384 people were murdered, and 44 were taken hostage.

After a meeting with the representatives of the families of those murdered at the party, and because a permanent commemoration had not yet been decided on the site, KKL-JNF chose to take up the gauntlet and initiate the upgrade plan.

The area where the party was held has been defined as an area for forestry development and is located in an ecological corridor with a high concentration of anemones.

KKL-JNF’s plan includes the establishment of seating areas, accessible paths, toilet buildings, organized parking, and more in the area.

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Yaniv Maimon, director of the southern region at KKL-JNF, said that the organization felt an urgent need to carry out the upgrades and provide accessibility for the families of the victims and the general public.

"We felt even before October 7 that we were in some sort of vacuum,” Maimon said. “KKL-JNF is responsible for the area, and we correctly decided to make it more comfortable and accessible for the thousands of visitors who come there every day — both families and the general public, especially since the place will become a pilgrimage site. Already today, it is the most visited site of KKL-JNF.”

Following the plan’s approval, KKL-JNF began to work to make the site more accessible and improve the conditions for visiting it while creating orderly paths between the main points of the site, such as the murder sites, the memorial site established by the families where the photos of those killed appear, and the infamous garbage container, where men and women were slaughtered in cold blood by Hamas terrorists.

Maimon explained that the allocated NIS 4 million is already being put to use, and the project has begun. An additional budget of NIS 1.5-1.7 million will be necessary to continue the ongoing upgrade and maintenance operations there.

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"In the budget we approved, we were able to establish a set of paths between the main spots at the site so that visiting the site may be comfortable and accessible for people with disabilities, the elderly, and those who come with wheelchairs,” Maimon explained. “We also placed trash cans, seating areas, water fountains, and restrooms throughout, with a plumbing system instead of the chemical toilets that were there until now.”

He added, “All of this is done in close cooperation with the families. In addition, there is a team of KKL-JNF employees who maintain the place daily, from cleaning to maintaining order.”

Maimon described the improvement in conditions at the site as an honorable step taken out of respect for the general public who visit there and the bereaved families and added that work continues to upgrade the site further.

“As part of the upgrades, we plan to place more dignified garbage cans and replace the victims' photos with uniform photos resistant to rain and sun,” he said. “Each image will have a brief description of the victims in coordination with the families.”

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Another decision by KKL-JNF was to gradually take down the banners and posters currently hanging at the site and create a uniform and dignified memorial for all the victims of the party instead. “Not all families have the financial ability to create the memorial site they want, and the idea is to ensure that the way it is presented is dignified and uniform for all of them,” Maimon explained.

“We estimate that this site will remain forever and will do so under KKL-JNF’s responsibility,” he said. “It requires quite a bit of work daily, but it is an essential solution for both families and the general public. We will continue the maintenance of the site and improve what needs improvement. For example, all the roads there are now dirt paths, which must be taken care of before winter to ensure that access will be safe.”

‘For the families and the public’

Exactly one year after the October 7 massacre, the site was inaugurated: Memorial Park.

President Isaac Herzog was in attendance and spoke at the moving event alongside representatives of the hostage families and families of those murdered. 

One of those grieving parents is Meir Zohar, the father of the late Bar Zohar. Zohar, who said that one of the families' greatest fears was losing control over the memorialization of their loved ones, emphasized how vital the assistance and cooperation with KKL-JNF is.

“I was in the Knesset and spoke of the difficult conditions at the site and the disrespectful appearance,” he said in his speech, adding that the one person he felt really heard him was the chairwoman of KKL-JNF. “The following day, I met the area manager at the site, and the day after that, tractors were already onsite. In fact, since then, daily cooperation with KKL-JNF began, and they acted without hesitation.”

“It's been a year since we've been in the complex reality of a cursed war that was forced upon us,” Ovadia-Luski, the chairwoman of KKL-JNF, said. “We will continue to stand and hug the families in difficult moments.”

KKL-JNF has consistently stood beside the families of the victims of the Nova massacre since it occurred. The bereaved families participated in an emotional tree-planting ceremony during this year’s Tu BiShvat planting events, together with KKL-JNF at the Re’im Forest in January to commemorate and immortalize their loved ones.

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