"In Gaza, I learned to get used to hunger, to understand that this is it, there is no food. The longing is stronger than I ever thought was possible to feel, as if your heart is being ripped out.ā
Yagil Yaakov was kidnapped by Hamas when he was only 13 years old.
āYou run through your whole life before the kidnapping, and think, what the hell did I do to deserve this situation?ā
āAnd on the other hand - I was saved, and that's not easy either. Why was I and others werenāt?"
Yagil spent the months after he gained his freedom advocating for the return of his father, Yair Yaakov, zāl.
Yair was murdered on October 7th, his body kidnapped to Gaza.
Yagil told how his captor once beat him for looking out the window in the house he was kept in.
āHe grabbed me, threw me on the couch, beat me. I was shirtless, I remember the beatings and the marks on my back a long time later. It was a difficult day, even on that day I thought about how to commit suicide.ā
The hostages may be home, but the horrific experiences they went through will haunt them forever.
Never forget Yagilās story.
Hamas abducted and tortured children on October 7th. It can never happen again.