After a seven-week nightmare in which they feared they would never see their loved ones again, thirteen Israeli hostages were finally reunited with their families yesterday.
There were emotional scenes in Tel Aviv hospitals as young children sprinted to their parents and grandparents – 49 days after they were snatched by Hamas terrorists in the October 7 attacks.
“I dreamed we were going home,” said little Raz Asher, four, sitting on her relieved father Yoni’s lap.
With a trembling voice, he replied softly, “Did you dream that you were going home? Here the dream came true. We are home, we are going to our house soon. We’ll be home soon.’
Hamas terrorists took Raz along with her two-year-old sister Aviv and their mother Doron from their home on Kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel last month in a terror attack that killed 1,200 Israelis and took 240 hostage.
Aviv Asher, 2.5 years old, her sister Raz Asher, 4.5 years old, and mother Doron, react as they meet Yoni, Raz and Aviv’s father and Doron’s husband, after returning to Israel to the designated complex in the Schneider Children’s Medical Center, during a temporary ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, in Petah Tikva, Israel, in this handout photo released on November 25, 2023
Ohad Munder, 9-year-old, reacts as he meets his relatives after returning to Israel to the designated complex at the Schneider Children’s Medical Center, during a temporary ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, in Petah Tikva, Israel
Ohad is kidnapped by Hamas gunmen during the October 7 attack
Yesterday, the Asher family hugged each other on a hospital bed at Schneider Children’s Hospital after being released with the first group of hostages as part of a four-day ceasefire. Doctors said the hostages appeared to be in good physical health but would require a long period of psychological therapy.
Yoni, 37, said: “I am determined to help my family recover from the terrible trauma and loss we have experienced, for the future of the girls and Doron. Complex days still lie ahead of me. I’m happy to have my family back, but I don’t celebrate it.
“I won’t celebrate until the last hostages return.”
Last night, Hamas cruelly delayed the release of a second hostage for hours. But after Israel threatened to resume military attacks, the terrorist group eventually handed over another thirteen Israelis to the Red Cross in Gaza.
Earlier, tear-jerking footage showed nine-year-old Ohad Munder breaking into a sprint and running into the grateful arms of his father, who picked him up in a big hug.
Ohad was earlier seen in the clutches of a Hamas terrorist late Friday in footage of the hostage transfer. The boy had spent his ninth birthday in captivity with his mother Keren Munder, 54, and grandmother Ruthi, 78. A cousin, Itay Raviv, 27, told The Mail on Sunday: ‘We are so happy that they are all back with us. But we still have one family member and two hundred hostages in Gaza. All families should be as happy as we are right now.”
Itay, who was due to meet his relatives at the hospital last night, said: “I spoke to them briefly on the phone. They sound okay, but they’ve been through tremendous trauma. That trauma will take some time to heal. The reality is that their lives have been destroyed. They were cut off from everything for almost 50 days. They just need time to get their lives back on track. I saw a picture of Ohad playing with a Rubik’s cube and he enjoys playing with it.
‘He just needs some normalcy now. It will be a long recovery period for them. How does a nine-year-old get back from this hell?’
Emilia Aloni, five, released with her mother Danielle, 44, pictured hugging her grandmother
Daniele Aloni hugs members of her family after her release from Hamas and arrival in Israel
Danielle was featured in a Hamas propaganda video shouting at Israeli authorities to arrange their release
Emilia Aloni, five, released with her mother Danielle, 44, was pictured hugging her grandmother. Danielle was featured in a Hamas propaganda video shouting at Israeli authorities to arrange their release.
Her cousin Alana Zeitchik said, “I feel there is some light; my heart screams. We cry and cry. It’s indescribable to see them come back. It is also bittersweet, partly because we are still waiting for the return of four family members and also because we know the trauma they carry with them.”
Last night, Professor Silvana Fennig, director of the department of psychological medicine at Schneider Hospital, said: ‘Teams of psychologists and psychiatrists are ready to help them and we are also ready to help the families. The children and adults are in a good and stable physical condition, but it is still too early to say more about the emotional state of the children.’
The Israeli prisoners were released, along with ten Thai nationals and one Filipino, in exchange for 39 Palestinian prisoners. They were women and teenage boys detained for rioting and other crimes in the West Bank. Last night it emerged that one of the released female prisoners had stabbed an Israeli border guard in 2015.
Additional reporting: Sabrina Miller