In the exhibition room of Berlin’s old Tempelhof Airport, three burned-out cars lie on their sides.
The windows, interiors and paintwork are gone; all that remains are lumps of twisted and rusted metal. Next to them is a rough circle of tents and scattered mats.
A picnic chair has toppled over on one, others are strewn with abandoned bags, camping equipment and discarded fairy lights.
“Everything you see here is original from the festival on October 7th,” Ofir Amir explains.
He’s referring to the Nova Music Festival, where around 400 people were murdered on 7 October 2023.
In the week where peace finally feels like a possibility, Ofir is remembering those killed in a massacre that sparked the latest conflict.
All around us are tables of abandoned items left behind in the panic. One displays clothes; another is filled with shoes.
All of them are reminders of a day, Ofir, who was a co-founder of the festival, nearly didn’t survive.
“When the terrorists came to the festival area, we saw them just shooting into the crowd that was running away from them,” he tells me.
Ofir and his friends managed to jump into a car and started to drive away, but they were cornered by Hamas militants who opened fire.
One of their friends died, and Ofir was shot in both legs. He remembers he was on the phone to his wife, who was nine months pregnant at the time.
‘How will my wife raise a child alone’
“This was all I could ever think about,” he says, “that I might not come home, and how will my wife raise a child alone.”
Ofir’s friends used what they could to stop the bleeding and managed to keep him alive until help came.
The memorial exhibition was created in memory of those who died.
It’s already opened in cities including New York and Toronto, but on the second anniversary of the October 7 attacks, the exhibition began its first European show in Berlin.
“With so much hate going on, so much antisemitism everywhere on the streets, all over the world, it’s important to show the world and give them a reminder when you go so blindly and follow hate, what the outcome can be,” Ofir says.
Omri Sasi, also a co-founder and DJ at the Nova Music Festival, was in the car with Ofir when they were hit.
He picks out faces from a long line of photos which cover one wall.
Ofir Amir was shot in both legs as he escaped the festival
‘They were murdered together’
“This is my uncle, Avi Sasi. This is Alex Luke, my friend from Montreal… they were murdered together,” he says.
Beside them are the photos of Omri’s pregnant cousin and her husband, who were also killed.
Despite their losses, Omri and Ofir say they don’t want the exhibition to focus on religion or politics but to help spread peace.
However, the memorial event has faced some opposition; for example, several hundred demonstrators protested against Israel at the exhibit in New York.
In Los Angeles, Omri says a pro-Palestinian group also gathered outside the show. He invited them in, and they talked about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Omri Sasi was also in the car with Ofir, when they were hit by Hamas gunmen
‘We cried together’
“We cried together, we hugged each other and we understood that the best way to deal with this war is to talk,” he says. “Not to fight and not hit people.”
More than 60,000 Gazans have died in the Israel-Hamas war, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.
Omri tells me he has friends in Gaza, that he wants the ceasefire to hold, and Gazans “to have a good life” – but he’s also deeply concerned by the rise in antisemitism he’s seen in the last two years.
“People are scared,” he says. “Even when I go out here in Berlin, I look around myself and I try to not speak in Hebrew, and this is sad.
“It doesn’t need to be like this.”
Liora Furema says she is worried about her safety at Jewish events
Authorities across Europe have warned about growing hate and violence against Jewish people since the October 7 attack.
The fatal synagogue attack in Manchester has added to the fear.
This week, Germany’s domestic intelligence chief said antisemitism had increased with sometimes open calls for attacks on Jewish institutions, while the country’s chancellor denounced the trend as “shameful”.
At the Berlin exhibition, Liora Furema says she’s worried about her safety as a Jewish student when she goes to university or to the synagogue.
“At any Jewish event, I think about my security,” she explained.
Omri says he is deeply concerned by the rise in antisemitism
It’s hoped the ceasefire will be the beginning of the end of the war in Gaza, but the fear of antisemitism remains.
Rather than deepening the divisions, the organisers say the show is a reminder of the dangers of allowing hate to flourish. They now are focusing on healing.
“Our message is, we will dance again,” says Omri. “Whatever happened to us, we are standing and dancing again. Terror cannot beat us.”
