My Heart Remains Captive in Gaza

On Oct. 7, 2023, my freedom, security and peace were brutally taken from me. That day, I was kidnapped from my home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. The rolling fields and beautiful farmland of our kibbutz turned into a battlefield as hordes of terrorists raided our homes, murdering, kidnapping, burning and looting. A quarter of the community that I was a part of for 56 years was either murdered or kidnapped. I am 86 years old; in my life, I had never experienced this sort of horror.

When the terrorists arrived at my house, it was Saturday morning. I was in my pajamas. I lived alone. They came into my home with guns pointed at me; I couldn’t escape. It was in the early stages of the attack. At first they wanted money. I took them to my bag in the bedroom and told them to take it, but then they wanted me, too. They forced me outside, where I saw many terrorists sweeping through the kibbutz and entering through the broken fence. I saw them looting and breaking everything — throwing all the clothes out of the closets, cutting everything up, breaking and stealing things.

My captors held my arms as they sat me on a golf ca