How An Israeli Mother and Daughter Survived in Gaza Captivity

Stand for Israel  |  January 9, 2024

A mother and her five-year-old daughter had a homecoming in Israel and reunited with family after weeks of captivity in Gaza. The mother, Aloni, says they weren’t allowed to speak except in a whisper and guards watched their every move, but Aloni’s love for her daughter gave her hope, reports The Jerusalem Post:

Interviewed on Israel’s Channel 13 TV, Aloni described the ordeal as a supreme test of parenting. Separated from her sister and nieces, she and Emilia were carted past jeering Palestinian mobs and into a Hamas tunnel that had iron-barred holding cells.

“My darling, do whatever they say. Stay next to me,” Aloni recalled telling her dumb-struck daughter…

It was caring for Emilia that kept Aloni going, she said. Still, the boredom and inactivity were so onerous that Aloni would encourage Emilia to sleep during the daytime hours, too…

The sound of Israel’s military assault on Gaza reached them, giving Aloni some reassurance they would be rescued eventually: “But the time – the time is something very, very significant.”