Security Measures at London Exhibition
Two police vans were stationed near the front entrance, with officers patrolling the surrounding pavements. Security personnel in suits and earpieces maintained vigilant and stern expressions, scrutinizing those approaching the venue. The location in east London was kept confidential until the morning of the event, reflecting the high level of precaution.
This heightened security was not due to a visiting dignitary or embassy but was in place for the Nova exhibition, a commemoration of the 378 individuals massacred at a music festival on 7 October, alongside the 44 hostages taken and the 19 who died in captivity.
Controversy and Calls for Engagement
When the exhibition was previously displayed in New York, hundreds gathered in Lower Manhattan to protest Israel's actions following the 7 October attack. Some protesters labeled the exhibition as political propaganda.
Elkana Bohbot, co-organiser of the 2023 music festival and a survivor who endured 738 days as a hostage in Gaza—690 of which were spent in a tunnel—made an appeal to potential demonstrators in London:
"Come in for one minute. Not an hour but just one minute. Come inside. That’s it."
Exhibition Overview and Historical Context
London is the tenth city to host this immersive exhibition, which serves as a reminder of one of the gravest atrocities against Jews since the Holocaust. A room displays shoes belonging to those who fled, evoking memories of the spectacles, hair, and footwear that served as evidence of crimes in concentration camps.
The Nova exhibition in Shoreditch, opening to the public on Wednesday, utilises vivid footage captured via victims’ phones and body cameras of those involved. Its purpose is to confront viewers with undeniable evidence and challenge those who deny the event’s severity, according to Bohbot, 36, whose pale complexion reflects the ongoing trauma he endures.
Immersive Experience of the Festival and Attack
Visitors begin the six-week exhibition by viewing a three-minute film featuring festival attendees describing the joy of the event and the beauty of the sunrise as they danced. The film concludes with footage of the moment the DJ was informed to halt the music, announcing a "Red alert, red alert" to the crowd.
The subsequent room is dark, noisy, and chaotic, scattered with participants’ belongings and significant items from the crime scene. Burned-out cars and bullet-riddled toilet cubicles are displayed alongside pro-cam footage illustrating the unfolding events. Audio recordings capture the experiences of those hiding under bushes or forced to march tens of miles toward safety.
One recording features a Hamas attacker boasting to his father about killing "10 Jews with my own hands" and calling from the phone of a Jewish woman he had killed along with her husband.
Detailed Accounts from Survivors and Families
Another exhibit includes CCTV footage from outside a bomb shelter near the festival where young men and women sought refuge. The footage shows grenades being thrown inside by terrorists and quickly thrown out by Aner Shapiro, a 22-year-old British-Israeli off-duty soldier who had come to dance with friends.
His parents, Moshe, 55, and Shira, 50, recounted that they could trace every moment of the last 30 minutes of their son’s life through first-hand accounts, phone footage, and CCTV. The shelter, designed for eight, held 27 people.
"He told them: ‘My name is Aner Shapiro, I’m a soldier. I have to tell you, there’s a war now, a big war. Don’t be afraid. You’ll be OK. I will protect you,’" said Shira, who was born in Oxford.
Shapiro is believed to have thrown out as many as 11 grenades before being targeted with a rocket-propelled grenade and more grenades. He died after a gunshot wound to the head. Before falling, he instructed those behind him to follow his lead, which they did until Hamas attackers stormed the shelter. Of the 16 inside, five were taken hostage, one was shot immediately, and three later returned alive from Gaza.
Moshe Shapiro reflected on the protest outside the New York exhibition:
"They don’t want to know. But it’s not that they cannot learn about what happened."
"The protest was a manifestation of how important it is to do this exhibition over and over and in more and more places," said Aner’s father.
Family Testimony of Another Victim
Lisa and Michael Marlowe from north London last spoke with their son Jake, 26, at 4:30 am UK time on 7 October. Jake was an unarmed security guard at the festival.
"Oh he’ll be asking for money again," said Michael, 64, recalling his initial thoughts upon receiving the early morning call.
"He was just saying: ‘I love you. And I’ll keep in touch. There’s a lot of commotion going on, there are paragliders in the air. I’ll call you back when it’s all calmed down.’"
Jake never called back.
Michael emphasized the importance of the exhibition:
"It is important for everyone to see the exhibition. We are not lying."
Michael had to identify his son’s body in a morgue in Israel.
