On November 22, 2023, Chantal and Nicky Young closed their front door in London for the final time and boarded a flight to Israel.

Family members were waiting at arrivals in Tel Aviv with a sign saying, “Welcome home Grandma and Grandpa.” One person who wasn’t there, however, was the youngest of their five children: Nathanel.

The 20-year-old was murdered by Hamas on October 7. Two years previously he’d made Aliyah – the term for Jewish immigration to Israel, which translates as “ascendance” – and was serving with the Israel Defense Forces on the Gaza border.

“Nathanel’s dream had been for us to make Aliyah. He’d been looking for a property for us,” his French-born mother Chantal told CNN.

The Youngs were planning their move when Nathanel was killed. “We were in shock,” said 62-year-old Chantal, who oversaw catering at a Jewish school before she emigrated. “For a long time, I wouldn’t say that my son passed away, I’d say ‘he’s gone on a trip,’ because it was very difficult for me to accept.”

Nathanel’s grieving parents soon decided to realize his dream by bringing their move date forward, despite the war.

Nicky and Chantal Young (center) surrounded by their family. Their youngest child, Nathanel (pictured in a white t-shirt at the front), was killed by Hamas on October 7, 2003. Young Family

The Youngs are among thousands of Jewish people who have made Aliyah in the two years since the brutal Hamas-led attacks. Some have been motivated by a need to stand in solidarity with Israel, others by a desire to find a refuge fro