The war with Iran poses a complex challenge for hostages who were released from Gaza. Like other trauma victims, the stress accompanying sirens, explosions, and the rush to shelters triggers memories of difficult moments. Each person copes differently, but for all of them, it causes significant distress.
“We will live with captivity for the rest of our lives. A fighter jet just flew overhead, and it triggered something in me,” shares Luis Har, who was rescued from Gaza in a military operation after 129 days in captivity. “I’m aware of reality and tell myself it’s not against us; these are our planes. Not everyone can do that. Every noise startles us. Only when awareness overcomes emotion, the instinct, can we move forward, tell ourselves we got through it, we are in our country.”
"It immediately brings us back to being there, in captivity," Har continued. "A feeling of insecurity, of being dependent on others. That you can’t decide anything. It’s complicated. We all carry this inside, and it will resurface even years from now. This is post-trauma. The question is how to overcome it and move forward. I keep trying to move on.”
“My luck is that I returned to the Negev, to Urim, and here there aren’t many explosions or sirens,” he says. “I’m hosting my daughter, who lives in central Israel with her husband and three children, and another daughter who lives in a kibbutz. The house is full, full-time. Every time there’s an alert, I wrap my grandchildren in my arms, try to give them a sense of security, and explain how good it is that there are sirens because they save us. I overcome what I feel inside, my fears, by giving the children a sense of safety.”
Five members of Har’s family were kidnapped on October 7.
“Each of us experienced it differently. We were taken to Rafah on October 7, went through tunnels, were afraid of every explosion. We knew our building could explode with every plane that passed,” he recalls. “Many offer help, but right now I’m coping alone. We don’t dwell on it. Sometimes you look at a former hostage and see that although they’re physically here, mentally they’re having a panic attack. Not everyone knows how to identify that.”
Amit Soussana's mother: Amit varies between anxiety and indifference
Mira, the mother of former hostage Amit Soussana, said, “After 20 years of rockets, we’re used to it. With Amit, it varies between anxiety and indifference. There are moments she won’t get out of bed, and moments she’s hit by anxiety and runs to the safe room.”
"Everyone who returned from captivity is not fully balanced; there are many ups and downs," she continued. "Sometimes she laughs, sometimes she cries, sometimes brave, sometimes terrified. It changes. We cope through many conversations. We talk a lot, I hug her, cook for her. She takes care of her cats that were left behind on October 7, she won’t leave them unless someone stays with them at home, she’s anxious about their condition. Another daughter of mine lives abroad and wants us to go to Greece. No way.”
When the current war broke out, Mira was traveling abroad with other families of hostages.
“We were supposed to return on Sunday. We were stuck there until Thursday, when evacuations began. It’s crazy to be there while my daughters are exposed, while my country is going through something so difficult. It was very hard for me,” she said.
“People don’t understand anything.
I read comments; the attitude really upsets me. For example, when a former hostage traveled abroad as part of a delegation, she posted about it, and the whole internet attacked her, saying this is what they do with donations they receive,” she added. “The support system for released hostages and families is mostly from private organizations, meetings, and mental health treatment. We are the ones taking care of it.”
Some of the released hostages choose to cope with humor.
Elkana Bohbot and Ohad Ben-Ami met in a shelter and shared the moment on an Instagram story.
“Oh God, have mercy. It reminds us of old times,” Bohbot said in the video, laughing. “So, Ohad, how are you feeling?” he asked his friend, who joked that someone should "go get food.”
Bohbot replied, “Tell him to bring ful, add some za’atar.”
Ben Ami continued, “Shall we ask for tea, brother, this time?”