Brighton community leads final hostage vigil in Palmeira Square

The memorial began just one month after the Hamas attacks in southern Israel, when around 1,200 people were murdered, including 18 UK citizens, and 251 were kidnapped into Gaza. Forty-eight remain in captivity, of whom around 20 are believed to be alive.

For Adam Ma’anit, whose cousin Tsachi Idan was kidnapped and murdered in Gaza, after terrorists broke into his home in Israel and murdered his 18-year-old daughter, Ma’ayan, the memorial, which he helped set up, has been a source of profound comfort. “The way that members of the community have come together to support us, attend events, look after and protect the memorial, campaign for the hostages, and show real, genuine warmth and solidarity to victims’ families and loved ones is what has made it so special,” he said.

Adam Ma'anit spoke at the vigil (Photo: Heidi Bachram)[Missing Credit]

Over its 21 months in Palmeira Square, the memorial was both cherished and targeted, subject to more than 50 acts of vandalism, including the slashing of the Book of the Dead, antisemitic leaflets, harassment of mourners, and even faeces left inside the memorial book. On five occasions, the memorial was completely destroyed and had to be rebuilt.

Yet, despite hostility, organisers stressed the importance of grieving openly. As Bachram explained: “The victims have been so dehumanised and made to be invisible. We wanted to tell their stories, make them whole again…This tiny space had a massive ripple effect throughout the world. We must never forget those who were brutally taken from us. We never will.”

She paid tribute to the volunteers who had turned up “in all weathers” to lead services. “We have learned there is a terrifying streak of hatred that runs through our city but also a comforting show of love.”

The victims have been so dehumanised and made to be invisible. We wanted to tell their stories, make them whole again…This tiny space had a massive ripple effect throughout the world

For many bereaved families, Palmeira Square became a place of healing and remembrance. Lisa and Michael Marlowe, whose son Jake was murdered at the Nova music festival, held a service there in July 2024. They reflected: “Palmeira Square in Brighton has become a beacon of light for families whose lives were shattered on 7-10-23. We are one of them. Our beloved son, Jake, 26, was murdered at the Nova Festival on that horrific day. Palmeira Square has become a very special place of remembrance, resilience and unity.”

Steve Brisley, the brother of Lianne Sharabi, who was murdered alongside her daughters Noiya, 16, and Yahel, 13, in Kibbutz Be’eri, and whose brother-in-law, Eli Sharabi, spent nearly 500 days in capitivity, had travelled from Wales for the service.

He spoke about healing, saying that he had been supported by the “extraordinary love and strength of the Jewish community”, but that healing also needed people outside the Jewish community as “pain like this is human, and solidarity, compassion, empathy – these things are human too”.

He urged people to help those who had lost loved ones “by remembering names, by speaking them aloud, by making sure they’re not forgotten. You can help by practical kindness, cooking a meal, sending a message, walking alongside someone in their grief.

“If we stand with them, if we weave them back into the fabric of community, if we prove the cruelty has not broken our shared humanity, then that is healing too.”

In June 2024, Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and Lady Mirvis joined a special service, with the Chief Rabbi saying he was “in awe of the extraordinary dedication” of its organisers. “From Brighton a message goes out to the world: Never forget what happened on October 7th.”

People were given a candle holder and flowers at the last hostage vigil in Palmeira Square in Brighton (Photo: Heidi Bachram)[Missing Credit]

At the final vigil, one long-standing Brighton resident, Maayan, who regularly spoke at the services, said: “I read heart-wrenching stories of people I or my family had direct contact with who were murdered on or since of October 7. I translated them…with great difficulty and lots of tears, although it’s honestly the least I could do for these poor people, who will never again have the life they knew before.”

Community consultant Fiona Sharpe, who has supported the memorial since it began, described the final service as deeply moving, saying: “Through their own personal family pain, Heidi, Adam and Eden have created a public ‘safe space’ in a city where many Jews feel afraid to show their identity. Through all the hate directed to the memorial in the last 22 months, they have remained positive and dignified, uniting the Jewish community and welcoming the wider community to be part of that space.

"Even though the memorial is being relocated, that special energy of remembrance and love, for all those stolen from us on October 7, will forever remain in Palmeira Square.”

Rabbi Andrea Zanardo of Brighton & Hove Reform Synagogue, where the memorial will now move, said he had been particularly touched by the “support and comfort from people of all faiths and of no faith”, adding: “There are Christians and Muslims who travel from London expressly to defend the memorial, and then they join the prayer. How can anyone not be moved by such an outpouring of support?”

He stressed that the new site for the memorial at her synagogue would serve “all the community…everyone is invited to join”.

The daily dedications will still be available via a newsletter.

A spokesperson from the Sussex Jewish Representative Council said of the organisers of the memorial: “Their incredible work has brought the community - both Jewish and friends - together to remember all those murdered in the brutal attacks of October 7. They have ensured that Brighton, and the wider community, have not forgotten that terrible day.”

To get a Palmeira candle holder and anemone, contact palmeiramemorialgroup@gmail.com or follow on Instagram @palmeiramemorial

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