Israeli Man Bar Asraf Shoots Himself On Grave Of Girlfriend Liron Barda Killed In October 7 Attack

The boyfriend of a 26-year-old woman who was murdered by Hamas while helping wounded victims during the Nova music festival on October 7 shot himself at her grave, according to reports by Israeli media.

30-year-old Bar Asraf was found dead on Liron Barda’s grave on Saturday, three days after he danced at his brother’s wedding. Although he seemed happy and sang and danced in excitement, he was “struggling”.

Asraf told his mother that there was nobody who could replace Liron and that there was no one to “cheer” him up.

According to a report by Ynet News, his family said that they were “inseparable” and “soulmates”. 

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His sister, Lihi, said, “On Thursday he asked me to spend time with his friends, something he would never normally do. He told me how proud he was of me, that I was a combat soldier and that I was his pride. I didn’t understand why he was telling me all of that.”

On Saturday, the family celebrated Shabbat Chatan, which is an event to honour the groom. However, that afternoon, after the family could not find him, they started a search for him.

“We thought about where he might have gone and said we’d check Liron’s grave. At first I didn’t see him. Then I saw him lying there. I screamed, ‘Bar, get up!’ Only then did I understand what had happened. At first I was afraid someone had killed him. I couldn’t understand what I was seeing,” Lihi said.

Liron and Asraf had been childhood friends and had an extraordinary friendship.

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Liron was managing bars at the Nova festival on October 7 when Hamas attacked. Although friends urged her to escape, she refused and decided to help the wounded. She was murdered while providing first aid to the festivalgoers.

After Liron was killed, he did not sleep for a week. 

“He didn’t talk, eat or laugh. Gradually he began to recover. He started laughing again, talking to people and spreading Liron’s love. He organised meals for soldiers in her memory, and during Passover he launched a campaign to distribute care packages to families in need. He was someone who was always helping others,” Lihi said.

His mother, Bracha Asraf, said he used to visit her grave every day.

“Liron was everything to him. She was his best friend and his psychologist. It was important for him to tell her about everything he did. After she was murdered, he went to the cemetery almost every day. I told him not to go all the time, only when he truly felt he needed to talk to her, and he listened,” she said.

The attack by Hamas resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and the abduction of around 250 hostages. 

According to a report by The Telegraph, about 50 survivors of the atrocity have died by suicide since. However, the number was questioned by the Israeli Ministry of Health because they lacked reliable, centralised tracking data to follow and verify the status of survivors over time.