The sun has set on Libby Cohen-Meguri

Murdered at Nova her mother preserves her daughter’s light

By: Maya Naftolin

Today, we are publishing a different kind of story from our usual fare.

In my immediate family, we have been engrossed in the horrific hostage crisis that has gripped Israelis since October 7. And from the very beginning, ensuring that their stories were amplified has been a mission of ours. And it is impossible not to be captured by the heartbreaking stories of lives cut short. So many were so young.

One of the core members of the STLV team is my daughter, Maya Naftolin. She is a meticulous researcher, editorial sounding board, social media Queen and basically keen to do whatever needs to be done. She is also forever changed by seeing so many of her peers suffer so horribly.

There was something about Libby Cohen-Meguri, a young Israeli woman who was slaughtered by Hamas savages while fleeing the carnage at the Nova Festival on October 7, that captured Maya’s attention. And would not let go. A few months ago, she suggested to me that perhaps I should meet with Libby’s mother - who was doing incredible things to ensure that her daughter’s spirit and soul remained alive. An article, perhaps? Maybe a podcast episode?

I was so moved. For many reasons. But mostly because of my daughter’s open heart and mind and desire to do what she can to preserve the memory and dignity of the voiceless. And I was touched that she was so taken with Libby and her mom. This was her project, I thought, and suggested that she was much better suited to the task,

This is Maya Naftolin’s first article published in State of Tel Aviv and Beyond. Shelly, Libby’s mom, has planned a big Libby Party for Saturday night at a Tel Aviv nightclub; a trance dance evening to celebrate her daughter’s brief but full life and indomitable spirit.

Today, it is 22 months since October 7. Libby was taken from us at age 22.

“I’m going to dance to trance music. And even if I die, dance to trance music for me.”

Libby Cohen-Meguri, Friday, October 6, 2023, as she left her home in north Tel Aviv.

On October 6, Libby had a fever. Her parents wanted her to stay home.

But Libby was headstrong. And she was determined to dance at the music festival that she had been anticipating for months.

It has become a rite of passage for young Israelis to go on extended trips to let loose after compulsory military service beginning at age 18. South America is a common destination, and many discover the trance music scene while there. This was not the case for Libby. She was already a hard-core fan.

Her IDF service as an infantry officer had been meaningful and she was looking forward to celebrating her freedom from demanding service.

When she left for her trip in February 2023, Libby didn’t have a return date. But after hearing about the Nova Music festival, she knew she would return to Israel before October 2023. It was going to be epic.

The Nova Festival was next level; with international trance superstars coming to Israel.

Nothing would stop Libby from going.

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At 6:29 AM the rocket attacks began. Libby phoned her mom, Shelly, to tell her that she was heading home with her close friend, Adi Maizel.

At 8:11 AM, Libby called again. She was calm and stoic. “Mom, they shot Adi in the head. She’s dead, next to me. I was shot in the arm and stomach. I’m losing a lot of blood. I’m going to die.”

Until this point, Libby’s family did not know about the terrorist invasion of the festival. During an eight-minute phone call, Libby asked for all of her family members to come on the phone. So she could tell them she loved them and say goodbye.

“Mom, are you listening? I love you, Mom.”

To her stepfather, “Yariv, are you listening? I love you, Yariv.”

To her twin brother, “Tomer, are you listening? I love you, Tomer.”

To her little sister and close friend, “Maya, are you listening? I love you, Maya.”

Shelly calls this Libby’s mantra. She repeated it until the final round of gunshot fire was heard, silencing her forever. Her family was on the line to the end. She was 22-years-old when she was brutally murdered.

Even in death, Libby continues to radiate light. Her stepfather, Yariv, is the Director of the Lis Maternity Hospital in Tel Aviv. He used to say that G-d sprinkles powder for different traits on every baby. With Libby, he says, G-d used a little too much charisma powder.

Her name is pronounced “lee-bee,” and is a literal translation from Hebrew, meaning “my heart.” But from the day she was born, Shelly called Libby “Shemesh,” the Hebrew word for “Sun.” Both names captured her essence.

Libby lived hard. She was fearless, loved adventure and was very athletic. An accomplished equestrian, she won many championships in Israel with her horse, Sebastian.

While in South America, Libby took salsa lessons almost every day. Within a few months, she danced like a pro.

On July 7, 2025, exactly 21 months after Black Saturday, I met Libby’s mother, Shelly Meshel-Yogev, at the family home in north Tel Aviv. Within minutes of arriving, she offered me something to drink and opened her heart to me for over an hour.

For the past five years, Shelly has worked out at the gym every morning. “I’m like Beyonce there,” she told me, jokingly. Everyone there knows her.

Two months before her South America trip to South America, Libby said that she wanted to work out at the gym. Shelly told her to book a session with her trainer. She did.

Libby's first training session was just before her mom's. When Shelly arrived at the gym, the first thing the trainer said to her was, “you think you're Beyonce here? There's a new one in town.” Libby swanned out as he said this; beaming and saying goodbye to everyone.

Libby’s fearlessness didn’t only manifest in her love of adventure and athleticism, but also how social she was. Libby was many things, but not shy. She made new friends everywhere she went, and in her way, fostered more connections by bringing people from different parts of her life together.

What Libby said as she walked out her front door for the last time, to dance to trance music - even if she dies - captures the essence of her will, Shelly says.

“I’m going to dance to trance music. And even if I die, dance to trance music for me.”

Since her death, Libby’s family has organized an annual trance music party in her memory at the Trask nightclub Tel Aviv. This year, the party is Saturday, August 9 in Tel Aviv.

Libby’s Party is just the tip of the iceberg.

Shelly has dedicated herself to memorializing Libby. During the shiva (7-day mourning period), she began speaking with print houses and graphic artists, to design memorial stickers for her daughter. Today, Libby’s image is plastered on boards and poles throughout Israel. “We’ve become a nation of stickers,” Shelly told me.

She’s right- everywhere you go in Israel, there are memorial stickers for murdered partygoers, fallen soldiers, hostages - every victim of this brutal war. Today, there are 50 collection points to pick up her stickers across Israel for Libby’s memorial stickers and magnets.

(photo credit: Maya Naftolin)

(photo credit: Maya Naftolin)

One month after Libby’s death Shelly had already established a not-for-profit organization Libby Itach, literally translating to “Libby (my heart) is with you.” Its purpose is to keep her memory and spirit alive.

In the past few months alone, Libby Itach organized a dog adoption day at the dog shelter where Libby volunteered and a “ropes course” day for children on the autistic spectrum. Additionally, an ongoing program for lone soldiers with private doctors all over Israel, free of charge. Throughout her IDF service as an infantry officer, Libby brought many lone soldiers home for a good meal, family, and love, and made sure to check in on them periodically.

In recent months, Libby Itach published two children’s books co-authored by Shelly (both available only in Hebrew). One of them, Libby’s Heart, is about better understanding and expressing one’s feelings, and includes an activity book. Perhaps to a fault at times, honesty and truth-telling were core values Libby embodied.

Since October 7, memorialization of the fallen and murdered has been done almost exclusively in Hebrew. Understandably. The occasional exceptions are native English-speakers and foreign nationals.

The bereaved families, who have and continue to endure unbearable trauma and grief, prefer to express their feelings in their emotional language, which tends to be their native tongue. They simply do not have the capacity to translate such raw pain and to remember meaningfully.

In contrast with the hostage families, who actively maintain public and diplomatic awareness internationally, there is not the same urgency amongst the bereaved families to speak about their loved ones in English. They cannot be saved. So, the stories of the fallen and slain when they were alive, are only told in Hebrew, limiting their audience.

I’ll never meet Libby, but I feel as if I know her through her mother’s incredible work. She brings Libby back to life, even for those who didn’t know her. This has become Shelly’s mission - to keep Libby alive even in death, and for others to get to know her.

As time passes, many bereaved families feel less supported than they did at the start of the war, nearly two years ago. The nation is worn out from grief and loss. And unfortunately, the number of bereaved families only continues to grow.

When I met with Shelly, she opened my eyes to a struggle that I was completely unaware of - the lack of infrastructure to support bereaved families of civilians. In the eyes of the State of Israel, they are entitled to the same rights as families of fallen soldiers, such as university subsidies and provident funds. However, they do not receive any financial support for memorial services, or memorialization of any kind.

Additionally, for families of fallen soldiers, there is a plethora of different organizations that provide both social and financial support, such as Friends of the IDF (FIDF) and the IDF Widows and Orphans Organization. However, such infrastructure doesn’t exist for bereaved families of civilians.

How is it possible that so many innocent civilians were murdered on October 7, and nearly two years later, there is no institutional, state-sanctioned programme to support bereaved families of civilians? This is a question that Shelly asks, and we all should be asking.

Libby was one of 364 party goers who was murdered at the Nova Music Festival. These beautiful young people are frozen in time.

Supporting the memorialization of slain civilians is critical, as much for national cohesion and healing as it is for the individual families. This is the only way that this battered nation can begin to process the unprecedented trauma of October 7.

Libby lived a life of happiness, joy, adventure, love, and kindness. Her death was so opposite.

She – and all the others – should be remembered for who she was, not how she died.

Maya Naftolin

Maya Naftolin was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, and has been living in Israel for 11 years. After making Aliyah, she completed national service with senior citizens in Tel Aviv. She holds a B.FA in Multidisciplinary Art from Shenkar College of Design and Engineering. Maya is a tour guide at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, working fluently in Hebrew and English.