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Or Levy was abducted by terrorists from what has come to be known as the "shelter of death"—a roadside shelter in which dozens of revelers from the nearby Nova music festival, including Levy and his wife Einav, sought refuge as Hamas launched its October 7 terrorist attack.
The small reinforced concrete structure which was meant to save lives, ended up becoming a death trap—Einav was murdered in the shelter alongside 15 other victims.
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Aner Shapira (R); Or Levy after being released from captivity
(Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit, AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
On Saturday, Levy finally returned home, reuniting with his 3-year-old son Almog, but also received the devastating news of his wife’s murder.
The heroism displayed in that shelter has already been widely recounted. Among those who fought back against the grenades thrown inside by the terrorists was Aner Shapira, a soldier of the Nahal Brigade’s elite reconnaissance unit who had been on leave that day and was attending the Nova festival. With extraordinary courage, Shapira stood at the shelter’s entrance, repeatedly catching and throwing back the grenades. The eighth grenade exploded in his hands, killing him.
Levy’s mother Geula shared on Saturday with Army Radio that after his release, he said he knew Aner’s story and expressed a strong desire to meet his parents. "He’s a hero, and we all know he’s a hero. Thanks to him, my son is alive," she said. She added that Or recounted how he himself threw the last grenade tossed by the terrorists before he was abducted. "He said he didn’t even have a chance to turn around and see his wife."
From that same shelter, Hersh Goldberg-Polin was also abducted, and was murdered in captivity at the end of August. "Or knows what happened in the shelter; he knows about Polin’s injury. He thought Polin had been released. He asked me if we had heard the name," Geula said.
She also revealed that Or mistakenly believed Almog Sarusi, who was murdered alongside Hersh and four other hostages in a tunnel, had been freed. "He was convinced that Hersh and Almog had returned," she said. She noted that Or "was held in a tunnel without communication and could only guess that his wife Einav had been murdered. On Saturday, he asked, and they told him."
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Or Levy reunites with family
(Video: GPO)
Moshe Shapira, the father of Aner, expressed great joy about the release of the man his son had helped save in the shelter, saying he hopes to meet Or soon. "Blessed is He who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to this moment. It’s incredibly moving and incredibly joyous. What Aner started has now come full circle. Or was saved and can now embrace his family and his son, and we pray for the release of all the others. There’s nothing greater than this."
Moshe added, "From the shelter, four people were abducted to Gaza; two of them remain in captivity: Elia Cohen and Alon Ehal. We are praying for their release, and may there be a complete group of survivors thanks to Aner," referring to the fact that seven people from the shelter survived the attack.
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He continued, "The shelter brought us a heavy blow when Hersh was killed, and we had hoped he would return. He is forever connected to Aner in our hearts. I’m glad we have a little light now. Whenever Or is ready, we’ll be very happy to embrace him and his entire family. We were moved by the return of every hostage, of course, but the hostages from the shelter especially touch our hearts. The state’s mission is to bring all the hostages home as quickly as possible and return to being a unified nation without divisions. This is a matter of saving lives—there is no debate here."
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Aner's heroism during the attack
Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Hersh’s mother, whose son was abducted from the same shelter along with Or, said: "We received the wonderful news that Eli, Or and Ohad were released today. We feel a deep connection to Or and his family because he and Hersh were abducted together from the same shelter, on the same truck, on October 7. In fact, Or's brother reached out to us immediately after the Sabbath to let us know that one of the first questions Or asked his brother that morning was how Hersh was doing. He assumed Hersh had been released long ago, and his brother had to explain to him that Hersh was murdered five months ago."
Hersh’s father, John, added: "Seeing the condition of the three hostages, hearing that Or had no idea what happened to Hersh, that Eli wasn’t aware of the fate of his wife and daughters—it’s just a gut punch for all of us, and it reminds us that we need to do more. I’m speaking directly to President Trump and Steve Witkoff—you’ve shown that you’re the only ones who managed to move this situation forward. Let’s not think in terms of Phase A, Phase B, and Phase C over many months. Let’s think bigger and faster. Release all 76 hostages this week. End the war. Let’s get this done now."