Yoni Asher numbly recounts his last conversation with his wife before the call was interrupted by Hamas gunmen who stormed in and took them away.
At home in Ganot Hadar, central Israel, Yoni Asher said on October 8 that his wife, Asher Katz, 34, and their two daughters had visited their grandmother's house in Nir Oz, a settlement near the Gaza Strip, the day before.
"On the morning of October 7, while I was talking to my wife on the phone, she suddenly said in a low voice that gunmen had entered the house," Asher, 37, recounted. This was apparently the time when Hamas militants crossed the border fence and entered Israeli settlements near the Gaza Strip.
Asher on October 8 recounted the last time he spoke to his wife. Photo: Reuters
Katz said she, her mother and two daughters were hiding in a safe room inside the house, while her mother's partner, Gadi Moses, went outside to negotiate with Hamas gunmen.
“She said they left with Mr. Moses,” Asher said, adding that he hoped his wife and children would be safe.
But the conversation was abruptly cut off and Asher was unable to contact his wife. He later saw them on social media, in a video. His wife, children and mother-in-law were sitting in the back of a pickup truck, surrounded by Hamas gunmen.
Asher has not been able to sleep since his wife and children were arrested, and has been giving interviews to Israeli and foreign media. He tries to keep his spirits up, believing that the Israeli government will "take action and bring my wife and children back as soon as possible."
"I want to beg Hamas: Don't hurt my wife and children. Don't hurt the children, don't hurt the women. I'm willing to be a hostage for my wife and children," he said.
The moment Yoni Asher's wife and children were arrested on October 7. Video: Reuters
Hamas confirmed it had taken more than 100 people hostage in Israel and taken them to the Gaza Strip. The group said today that four hostages and Hamas guards were killed in an Israeli airstrike in the territory, but did not name the victims.
On October 7, the Hamas armed forces controlling the Gaza Strip suddenly launched thousands of rockets and coordinated raids by land, air, and sea, simultaneously attacking many Israeli towns and settlements.
The Israeli government immediately declared a state of war on the same day, ordering the air force to deploy dozens of fighter jets to attack targets in the Gaza Strip.
More than 1,300 people have been killed in the fighting between Hamas and the Israeli army, including at least 800 Israelis and 510 Palestinians. The Israeli army is concentrating its forces to blockade the Gaza Strip and is likely to launch a ground campaign to attack this territory to "destroy" Hamas.
Hong Hanh (According to Reuters )
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