Liliana Segre at the sit-in of the Jewish Community in Milan in memory of the Bibas brothers

A sit-in in Piazza della Scala, in front of Palazzo Marino, the same Palazzo Marino that was not lit up in memory of the Bibas brothers as requested by the Jewish community. The meeting was organized precisely to remember Shiri Bibas and her two sons, Ariel (4 years old) and Kfir (9 months), who died in captivity after being kidnapped by Hamas. Senator for life Liliana Segre also participated in the demonstration and, when questioned by the press about her presence, she replied: "Being here is already an answer".

"All the children who were victims of October 7, killed or kidnapped, will be remembered," reads the appeal released in recent days. "We ask for the return of the 63 hostages still in the hands of Hamas and Gasa. We ask for the solidarity of Milan, a city twinned with Tel Aviv, for the respect of the human rights of all those kidnapped by Hamas terrorists."

The sit-in was organized after the appeal to the institutions to light the facades of buildings in orange, as a sign of solidarity. The Lombardy Region joined the initiative, while the Municipality of Milan declined. The issue sparked controversy especially from the center right. "There would be many reasons to continue to light, I don't think we will do it. I would say that the problem is to hold political positions", said the mayor Beppe Sala .

During the City Council on Monday, the issue was addressed not without controversy. For Alessandro De Chirico, councilor of Forza Italia, "the mayor spoke of not wanting to take sides. He demonstrated cowardice, because it is convenient not to take sides with the Jewish community, because in the majority political forces there is someone who, every Saturday, marches with the pro-Palestine". Deborah Giovanati, also of Forza Italia, asked Elena Buscemi, president of the city council, that the photographs of the children and their mother be displayed at the entrance to the building. Mariangela Paladino (Noi Moderati) recalled that the children "did not die under the bombs, which should never happen, but were kidnapped and perhaps killed as hostages of war".

Walker Meghnagi, president of the Jewish Community of Milan, also said: "We were very disappointed, very disappointed, I don't want to create controversy, but very disappointed". "Peace is certainly far away, we thought it was close. It's a horrible thing to see how they hand over the hostages", Meghnagi said during a moment of prayer organized at the synagogue for the Hamas hostages.