‘We’re in This Together’: Israelis Celebrate Hostage’s Rescue

Jerusalem, 1 November, 2023 (TPS) -- It was difficult to make my way down HaZayit Street, the narrow road where the Magidish family lives. All around me, Israelis were celebrating the rescue of hostage Uri Magidish from Gaza.

For three weeks, we’ve been hurrying off to bomb shelters, worrying about hostages, waiting to hear from loved ones called up for reserve duty, identifying bodies, visiting mourners and picking up the pieces of shattered communities near the Gaza border.

But on Tuesday, the rescue of 19 year-old Pvt. Magidish gave us a reason to briefly celebrate on an unseasonably warm and sunny day. A truck pulled up by the family’s home blasting music. People spontaneously danced in circles, in groups of six or seven, singing Am Yisrael Hai, which means “The Nation of Israel Lives.”

It was the kind of dancing we didn’t get to do on Oct. 7, which fell on Simchat Torah, a festive holiday best known for dancing in synagogues.

“I came to support the family and tell them to hold on strong and strengthen them. We’re in this together,” said Musa Abu Banayat, a Bedouin man who looked like he was in his 50s and wore an army uniform. He traveled all the way from his Negev town of Hura to Kiryat Gat.

“In the religion of Islam, [Hamas’s brutal attack] is not acceptable. We grow with the State of Israel, and its laws and the soldiers of the army and we are with them in water and fire,” he said, adding with emphasis, “Victory inshallah for the army.”

The rescue was announced on Monday, several hours after Hamas released a hostage video which was having a psychological effect on some Israelis. Magidish’s rescue was uplifting.

Much to Overcome

But even amid Kiryat Gat’s brief afternoon of joy, there were reminders that Israel still has much to overcome.

I found myself standing next to a man who had the look of a person who has aged a lot in a short period of time. He was wearing a black tee-shirt, and he clutched a cell phone in one hand and dragged a cigarette with the other.

His name was Tomer and he was trying to talk to a Swiss reporter. But Tomer didn’t know English, and neither the reporter nor the photographer accompanying her could speak Hebrew. So I found myself translating between them. Tomer spoke rapidly, in a flat, unemotional voice. He was trying to convey something urgent about some photos on his phone.

But the reporter was more interested in Tomer’s political leanings.

Who did he vote for in the last election? Might he vote for Netanyahu next time?

But eventually, she saw the photos. Dead bodies at the Supernova Music Festival on the grounds of Kibbutz Re’im. I can’t describe the images. Hamas killed 260 people at the rave, took hostages back to Gaza, yet Tomer somehow survived. The celebration on HaZayit Street drew him out of his apartment for the first time in three weeks.

The reporter listened to his story, as I translated. Afterwards, she asked me with, genuine concern, to convince Tomer to seek psychological help. I tried. Tomer told me in his flat, unemotional voice that he wants to go to Gaza with a rifle and avenge the deaths of his friends.

Ori Magidish was taken hostage when terrorists overran the Nahal Oz army base where she worked as a spotter. She had only enlisted in the army just six months ago.

Magidish was one of thousands of young Israelis who began army service this year. While she was one of 240 hostages, she became a symbol of hope simply for having the good fortune of being rescued.

We need moments of hope like this, because the war against Hamas will be a long one. And we don’t know if all the hostages will come home at all.

I met Dr. Rafeh Chalabi a retired Druze army officer. He looked very distinguished with a long dark robe, a white fez, and thick gray mustache. Two of his four sons, he added, were called up for reserve duty.

“I came here to Kiryat Gat from the north, from Daliyat al-Karmel, to strengthen, hug and bless Ori Magidish, who was kidnapped by Hamas. We the Druze are an inseparable part, integral, with Israeli society,” he said. “We are on the front lines. We’re also in the rear and we are everywhere and we will defend with all our might the borders of the State of Israel.”

After proudly adding that he has several sons serving in the Israeli military, he said it was a “great privilege” to “work together to protect the homeland of Israel.”