Ofir, a player in Hapoel's basketball youth team for eight years, made a decision at the start of the season to join the basketball team of the Eshkol region, aiming to unite his two passions: basketball and his girlfriend Yuval from Kibbutz Bari. Tragically, on October 7th, while at his girlfriend's house, he was abducted to Gaza.
After reading about Ophir Engl, I discovered that he is a 17-year-old teenager, when he was abducted to Gaza. Ophir's greatest love is basketball, and he even played for the youth team of 'Hapoel Jerusalem.' In the painting, I wanted to convey a sense of freedom and a feeling of levitation that characterizes a teenager at his age, in order to send Ophir a message after his release, that his life is still ahead of him. That he has emerged from the dark place into which he was involuntarily thrust, towards the brighter life awaiting him
Mural by Eli Babajanov
Location Rabenu Khanan'el St 22
Free the kids is a movement to release 38 children currently detained in Gaza, echoing a united call for their immediate return release.