Twelve-year-old Eitan Yahalomi, who was kidnapped from Nir Oz to Gaza alone, was returned to Israel Monday night after 52 days in Hamas captivity. His relatives talked about the horrors he went through in captivity.
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His grandmother, Esther, said from Ichilov hospital where her grandson is being cared for: "For the first 16 days, he was alone and even in a closed room. Imagine for yourselves what he went through there. To my great joy, they transferred him about a month ago to a group of people from Nir Oz, and it was much easier for him there. First of all, his caregiver from the nursery, from the children's home, was there. It was good for both her and him. He came back thinner, not smiling. But it seems to me that physically he is healthy." Esther also described: "I can still feel the first hug, it was strong, it was great. I had a lot of hope all this time, I didn't lose heart, I knew Eitan would come back and the army gave him back to me."
Esther said that Eitan is a "very reserved" child, and explained that "I believe it will take him time, we have a lot of work to do with him to get him back to a state where he can speak. During the day he calmed down a bit and his friends came from Eilat and made him very happy." The grandmother also said that "despite everything Ethan went through, he discovered his wonderful character in captivity, and this is from the stories of mothers who were there. He helped the little children, drew with them, hugged them and made sure they were well."
Eitan's aunt said this morning that he "experienced horrors" at the hands of Hamas terrorists, who, among other things, beat him, forced him to watch footage of the massacre they carried out on October 7, and threatened him and the other children they kidnapped with guns when they cried.
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Eitan Yahalomi's mother meets him at the Kerem Shalom Crossing
(Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit)
The aunt, Devora Cohen, told the French news channel BFMTV that "Hamas-ISIS terrorists made him watch the horrors they committed. The entire video from October 7. Every time a child cried, they threatened him with a gun. Civilians there beat him. He's 12 years old. Maybe it's naive but I thought he would be treated well there but they're monsters."
She added that: "Eitan's father is also still in captivity, how can you feel good after experiencing something like this? I give Eitan a big hug. He still has a long way to go."
Eitan was reunited last night with his mother, Bat Sheva, with his little sister Yael, 10, and with his baby sister. Eitan's father, Ohad, who defended his family on the morning of the massacre on October 7, was shot by the terrorists and was also kidnapped. He is still being held in the Gaza Strip.
9-year-old Emily told her father: 'I thought you were kidnapped'
Thomas Hand, the father of 9-year-old Emily, who was also released from Hamas captivity this week, told CNN in an interview about the moment when they were reunited. "The door opened and she ran to me, it was beautiful, just as I imagined it. I hugged her tightly, and only after she took a step back did I look at her face and noticed that it was chiseled, like mine. Before the captivity, Emily's face was that of a young girl."
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Thomas Hand says he hugged his daughter Emily tight when they were reunited
(Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit)
Thomas testified that Emily had lost a lot of weight and was very pale, but said that the most shocking thing he noticed in their first meeting was the way Emily had gotten used to speaking as quietly as possible, as the Hamas terrorists had forced her to in captivity. "When she spoke to me she only whispered, I didn't hear what she was saying, so I put my ear very close to her mouth to hear, and she said: 'I thought you were kidnapped.' She didn't know what happened that morning, she thought that everyone was either murdered or kidnapped. She had no idea."
Emily said that she was not beaten in captivity, but the children were forbidden to make noise, and all they could do to pass the time in captivity was to draw a little and play with cards. In addition, Emily returned from captivity with a head full of lice. Hand also said: "I asked her how long she thought she had been in captivity and she answered 'a year.' "
Hand testified about the difficult moment when Emily learned that her stepmother had been murdered. "We had to tell her about her mother, Narkis, who was murdered. Her eyes welled up and she took a sharp breath. It was very difficult," he said. He added that Emily had enough food to survive, but she was so hungry that she got used to even the most basic meals like a slice of bread with a little olive oil.
Emily was held captive along with Raya and Hila Rotem, and Hand testified that Raya "treated Emily like her own daughter, and did everything for her to come back," he said.
According to the father, Emily is just beginning to deal with what she experienced in Hamas captivity. "Last night she cried until her face was red, she couldn't stop. She didn't want any comfort, I guess she forgot how to comfort herself. She got under the covers, covered herself and cried quietly," said Hand, who waited until Emily was ready for him to touch her. "She is a very determined, very strong girl, I knew her spirit would get her through this."
He said that Emily and Hila are caring for each other. They celebrated Hila's 13th birthday with a cake at the hospital on Monday, and also brought Emily a cake, for the 9th birthday she missed while in Gaza. Now he is focused on the rehabilitation of Emily and the fight to get Raya back as well, who was watching over his daughter and was left behind, in what Hand called "another step of cruelty."