Alon Gat and his 3-year-old daughter Gefen have been waiting nearly two months for her mother, who was kidnapped to Gaza on October 7 after being separated as they ran from the terrorists. Today, 36-year-old Yarden Roman Gat will reunite with them, but Alon's sister Carmel is still in captivity.
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Just a month before the war and Hamas' surprise attack, the family left Kibbutz Be'eri, partly due to security concerns. They moved to Givatayim, went on a trip to South Africa and returned for a family holiday meal at the kibbutz, at Alon's parents' place.
Alon's mother was killed by the terrorists, and his sister Carmel was kidnapped. After they were taken from the house, four armed terrorists took Alon, Yarden and Gefen in a pickup truck stolen from the kibbutz and started driving toward the Gaza border.
According to the testimony of Yarden's sister, Roni, shortly before the terrorists reached the border fence with the three hostages, they were approached by an IDF tank.
"The armed terrorists jumped out of the vehicle and started to flee. Alon and Yarden, who was holding Gefen, seized the opportunity to jump out of the vehicle too, and started running toward the fields. They ran toward a nearby IDF outpost, but when they got closer, they realized it was abandoned, so they decided not to approach it."
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Roman Gat (center) at Rafah border crossing to Egypt after her release from Hamas captivity in Gaza
(Photo: Al Qahera News)
“At this stage, the terrorists had already spotted them and began to chase and shoot at them. Yarden handed Gefen over to Alon, and they both ran while being fired at, trying to find shelter. Yarden hid, while Alon kept running with Gefen in his arms – then they split up.
“For nearly 24 hours, Alon and Gefen hid in the bushes, hearing the terrorists moving around them, waiting for the right moment to escape. In the next morning, they joined the soldiers.”
Yarden’s brother said that on the same day, they "organized search parties of trackers and security personnel to look for her. Alon showed them the location and I stayed with Gefen, who told me, 'Dad is going to look for Mommy, she got lost and we have to find her.' Today, Mom Yarden is coming home.