Families of hostages taken by Hamas say they feel forgotten due to Gaza war

JERUSALEM – By now, Mr Moshe Lavi has recounted the nightmare so many times – in his head and to others – that he braces himself each time he shares it, numb and exhausted by a story that never changes.

On Oct 7, Palestinian militant group Hamas hijacked a relative’s social media accounts and used them to live-stream videos of some of his family members, and other residents of Kibbutz Nahal Oz, huddled near what appeared to be the body of a teenager.

His brother-in-law Omri Miran was abducted from the kibbutz and has yet to be found. Mr Lavi’s sister, Ms Lishay, and his two young nieces were rescued by the Israeli military that evening.

Nearly three weeks after Hamas’ Oct 7 attack in southern Israel, most of the more than 220 people believed to have been taken hostage by Hamas militants and other Palestinian groups remain missing, with little known about their status.

As the war rages on, many family members of those taken hostage fear that the plight of their loved ones is being overshadowed by the fighting.

Ms Alana Zeitchik, who had six family members kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz, said: “They are not humanised.”

This week in New York City, she rallied along with other relatives of those who had been abducted in Gaza, urging for action to secure the safe return of the hostages.

She remains haunted by the voice memos she received from her cousins, one of whom said, “I don’t think we’re going to make it”, before an agonising silence.

Later, looking at videos shared on social media, she recognised the face of her young niece in the back of a truck driven through Gaza by Hamas militants.

Ms Zeitchik’s cousin Sharon Cunio and her husband David are believed to have been abducted with their three-year-old twin daughters, Emma and Julie. Another cousin, Ms Danielle Alony, who was visiting the kibbutz on Oct 7 with her five-year-old daughter, Amelia, is missing with her child as well.

“The pain is immeasurable,” Ms Zeitchik said.

Only one hostage who has been released, ​​Mrs Yocheved Lifshitz, has shared some of her experience publicly.

It is impossible to discern how the other hostages have been treated.

Families have mobilised to share their stories on social media and with news organisations, knowing that public pressure and awareness could help bring their loved ones home safely.

On Thursday in Israel, Ms Hadas Kalderon, from Kibbutz Nir Oz, was using the occasion of her son’s 12th birthday to raise a cry for his return and those of the other hostages.

Her son Erez was last seen in a video being hauled off by gunmen on Oct 7. He is believed to have been kidnapped to Gaza along with his sister Sahar, 16, and their father Ofer, with whom they had spent the night.

Ms Kalderon, alone in her house nearby, stayed in her safe room, jamming the door closed, for more than eight hours before she was rescued.

“I didn’t think I was going to survive,” she told reporters, “but I did, maybe because I have to tell the story and save my kids and the 220 citizens who are still there.”

In New York, Mr Omer Lubaton-Granot organised a group of people whose family members have been abducted.

He described how it took days to learn what had happened to six of his family members in Kfar Azza. Two were murdered and four were kidnapped, he said.

“Unfortunately, we do have this experience with hostage situations in Israel,” Mr Lubaton-Granot said.

Public pressure from families helped bring Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit home in 2011, five years after he was kidnapped by Hamas, he said.

Mr Shalit was exchanged for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, many of whom had been convicted of deadly terrorist attacks against Israelis.

“That was one face, one story, one family,” he said.

Families have not agreed on any sort of demands to try to get their loved ones home safely, Mr Lavi said.

“We are civilians,” he said, “I’m not a politician. What I know I want is for the hostages to be released.” NYTIMES