Hostage Luis Har Almost Gave up in Gaza, Then Rescuers Came

Stand for Israel  |  March 28, 2024

70-year-old released hostage, Luis Har, says dreaming of his grandchildren kept him alive during captivity in Gaza. He explains in a Ynet News article that he broke down in the last days of being held hostage underground, but when IDF soldiers rescued him, he completely trusted them:

Just before the rescue, Har broke down and didn’t want Fernando to see him cry. He had already begun to lose hope, and then he heard a huge explosion in the apartment where he was being held captive. In the midst of the chaos, he said, he felt an arm grab his leg, and for the first time in more than four months, he heard a man he did not know address him in Hebrew. “Luis, this is the IDF, we have come to take you home,” he said.

“Suddenly all the pressure was released,” Har said. “If that soldier had told me to jump up, I would have jumped. We were completely in their hands. Really completely. There was a feeling of complete security.”

“There was gunfire from all directions, like in a movie,” said Har. “I have never seen anything like it before, but I knew I was in the best hands with the IDF who risked themselves to save us.”