The smiles and cheers fall on a painful backdrop as 58 hostages remain in captivity by Hamas.
Lishay Lavi Miran's husband and father of their two young daughters, Omri Miran, was ripped from their home in Kibbutz near the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023.
"Omri was taken from in front of our eyes," Miran says.
Similar grief is felt by Galia David. Her son Evytar David was kidnapped at 22 years old on October 7 at the Nova Music Festival.
"It's almost one year and eight months in the dungeon of Hamas," said David.
Many made it out, like freed hostages -- 66-year-old Kieth Siegal and his wife 64-year-old Aviva.
"It's the worst thing anybody, anybody should go through," said Avivia.
It was a disturbing trigger for a Holocaust survivor who escaped from Auschwitz. Jerry Wartski war marching in the Israel Day Parade on his 95th birthday.
"I don't with it on anybody to go through what we went through," Wartski said.
It was not just about participating in the parade -- many spectators say this hits home for them, too.
"It's so emotional and I just can't imagine what they went throughm," said Aliza Meiri.
"What's going on in the Middle East is terrible, and everyone should be brought home now," added Felix Green.
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