Coldplay Concert in Athens Resonates with Israeli Chants of 'Bring Them Home'

A powerful display of solidarity took place at a Coldplay concert in Athens on Sunday, as groups of Israelis chanted “Bring them home” in support of the 116 hostages still held by Hamas. The emotional chant began as the British band concluded their performance of “Yellow,” a song symbolically tied to the hostages' plight.

Amir Rosen, an Israeli attendee, described the moving scene to the Walla news site. “It was moving to see all the Israelis in front of people from all over the world not forgetting for a moment and reminding everyone that we are here, we are staying here, and we will not be whole until all the hostages come home.”

Athens has become a favored destination for Israelis, especially as many avoid Turkey due to Ankara's support for Hamas amid the ongoing conflict sparked by the October 7 attack.

The gesture at the concert followed the joyful news of the rescue of four hostages — Noa Argamani, Shlomi Ziv, Almog Meir Jan, and Andrey Kozlov — who were brought back to Israel on Saturday. Videos on social media showed large crowds of Israelis in Athens celebrating their return.

Currently, it is believed that 116 hostages, taken by Hamas on October 7, remain in Gaza, though not all are alive. During a weeklong truce in late November, 105 civilians were released, and four more hostages had been freed prior to that. To date, seven hostages have been rescued alive, and the bodies of 19 have been recovered, including three mistakenly killed by the military. The IDF has confirmed the deaths of 41 hostages based on new intelligence and findings from operations in Gaza. Additionally, one person remains missing since the initial attack, with their fate still unknown.

Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered Gaza in 2014 and 2015, along with the bodies of two IDF soldiers killed in 2014.

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