Canadian Israeli peace activist Vivian Silver killed in Hamas attacks

Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Facebook | Missing Vivian Silver/Facebook

Canadian Israeli peace activist Vivian Silver has been confirmed among those killed in the Hamas attacks on October 7.

One of Silver’s two sons, Chen Zeigen, told The Canadian Pressthat Israeli officials say the remains of the 74-year-old woman had been found in the kibbutz where she lived but were only identified now.

The Winnipeg-born peace activist was believed to have been one of the over 200 hostages from Israel taken by Hamas, which is classified as a “radical Islamist-nationalist terrorist organization” by the Canadian government.

Silver’s other son, Yonatan Zeigen, told CTV News that she was killed by the Gaza Strip’s governing militant group during the surprise attack over a month ago.

Chen told reporters in Ottawa last month that Silver had moved to Israel in 1974 and had dedicated her life to fostering peace and understanding between Israelis and Palestinians. She also volunteered to help children in Gaza get access to medical care in Israel.

In another interview with The Canadian Press last month, Yonatan condemned the military violence, saying that his mom raised him to believe peace is the only way to solve the conflict that has lasted for decades.

“My basic belief is that the military actions don’t solve anything,” he said.

“The attack on October 7, it was vicious [and] really brutal. But it happened in a certain context of this region of years and years of dehumanizing people from both sides.”

Tributes have been pouring in for Silver from Canadians and people around the world.

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh shared his condolences on X.

Vivian Silver was a Canadian peace activist

A light in times of darkness
A unifier in times of division
A voice for peace in times of war

Today, her family confirmed she was murdered by Hamas on Oct 7th

Canadians join them in mourning their loss

May her memory be a blessing pic.twitter.com/Q8nEWpYyIz

— Jagmeet Singh (@theJagmeetSingh) November 14, 2023

Others joined in, remembering her “brave and unwavering voice for peace and humanity.”

📢Truly heartbreaking to hear that the death of peace activist Vivian Silver has been confirmed. Vivian was a brave and unwavering voice for peace and humanity, who unapologetically saw Palestinians as humans, something many fail at. May she rest in peacepic.twitter.com/Ev7Z9j4Ph5

— Ramy Yaacoub (@RamyYaacoub) November 14, 2023

I am so sorry to hear the news that Vivian Silver, a peace activist born in Winnipeg and living in Israel, was killed by Hamas. Her life was devoted to peace and Justice. May her memory be for a blessing, and her courage and conviction be an example for us all. Let the killing… https://t.co/pVuufq27fu

— Bob Rae (@BobRae48) November 14, 2023

Deeply sad news… Vivian Silver, the peace activist, who we thought had been kidnapped to Gaza, in fact died during the Oct 7 attack on Kibbutz Be’eri.
DNA analysis of remains has identified Vivian, 74.
This is a woman who dedicated her life to peace – who built bridges with… pic.twitter.com/YXY3OVlaiB

— Tim Samuels (@TimSamuels) November 14, 2023

38 days after she was believed to be kidnapped into Gaza, Vivian Silver was just identified as one of the people slaughtered by Hamas on the October 7th massacre.

Vivian is one of Israel’s best-known campaigners for peace with the Palestinians.

May her memory be a blessing. pic.twitter.com/uQ2Dpq6iam

— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) November 13, 2023

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