Yahel is back
"It's a great relief," writes Ron Leshem that very night after the release of many hostages from his kibbutz Be'eri. The author and a relative of the hostages had previously told ntv who they were missing.
There is great relief in Kibbutz Be'eri, where twelve of the hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 were released yesterday. Six of them are from one family alone: three-year-old Yahel Shoham, called Yuli, eight-year-old Naveh, her mother Adi Shoham and her mother Shoshan Haran, 67, as well as Sharon Avigdori and her twelve-year-old daughter Noam, who were visiting their family in the kibbutz when the attack took place.
Shira Havron had told ntv about her family in an interview. Shoshan Haran, President of the Fair Planet Organization, as well as her daughter Adi and grandchildren Yahel and Naveh also have German citizenship. The children's father, Tal Shoham, has Austrian citizenship and is still a hostage of Hamas.
The Havrons family lost three other family members directly on October 7; they were murdered in the attack. The 27-year-old film student had lobbied the EU in Brussels and the German government in Berlin for the release of her family members. Her connection to the Be'eri kibbutz is a special one: It was her grandparents, Avraham and Rina Havron, who founded the agricultural collective.
"96 percent heaven and four percent hell"
"This place was 96 percent heaven and four percent hell - because of the endless rocket attacks and so on," says Ron Leshem, describing Kibbutz Be'eri. "It was so beautiful and quiet, characterized by social justice." The author and series producer's family comes from the left-wing, liberal, socialist kibbutz, whose inhabitants are committed to the peace process with the Palestinians. He lost his aunt and uncle in the massacre; they were burned alive.
He was very relieved that Yahel, Naveh and the others were released, Leshem wrote to ntv that night. But it was terrible that some of the children had to leave their parents behind. 13-year-old Hila Rotem Shoshani was released without her mother, her siblings Noam Or, 17, and Alma, 13, were also returned alone. Their father is still a hostage, their mother was murdered in the massacre. "I'm very worried about the rest of the hostages, including the men," says Leshem.
The Middle East conflict has once again brought conflict and tension to the Gaza Strip, with Israel and Hamas engaging in another war. The release of hostages from Kibbutz Be'eri, including three-year-old Yahel Shoham and her family, brought relief to the community but left others, like Hila Rotem Shoshani, still waiting for their loved ones to return.
Source: www.ntv.de
