Rescued hostages relive their captivity while praying for those still locked in

Photos: Efrat Eshel for Israel Hayom, Flash 90

Held captive by Hamas guards in a Gazan refugee camp, three Israelis were suddenly sprung from their cell in a lightning raid. Months later, with Hamas licking its wounds and talk of a hostage deal once more on the table, Shlomi Ziv and Almog Meir Jan relive their ordeal while praying for the release of those whose lives are hanging on by a thread

With fear and hunger their constant companions, the future promised only misery for the three Israeli hostages being held in a secret location in the heart of the Nuseirat refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.

Andrei Kozlov, Shlomi Ziv, and Almog Meir Jan were dozing on their mattresses on the floor of their darkened room on the Shabbos morning of June 8. After eight months in captivity, their captors had let down their guard somewhat — it was already mid-morning, and they were still sleeping in the next room.

Suddenly, the Israeli hostages heard shouting and gunfire. Instinctively, they tried to hide under their mattresses and blankets, in a vain attempt to shield themselves from the shrapnel. Then they heard a powerful explosion and a team of IDF soldiers burst into the house, led by the commander of the Yamam special forces unit, Arnon Zemora.

Zemora himself was struck by gunfire from the Hamas terrorists guarding the captives and mortally wounded, while additional Yamam soldiers burst in through the third-floor window. In one of the rooms, they found the three hostages — the gaunt, terrified captives cowering in the beams of the rescuers’ powerful flashlights, while the soldiers asked them to identify themselves by name.

“Andrei, Shlomi, Almog,” they answered, in turn.

“We’ve come to rescue you. Stay calm,” the soldiers told them.

Even so many months later, viewing the footage of the rescue is both scary and exhilarating. The elation of the rescuers and the disbelief of the hostages are both clearly evident, with the booming soundtrack of gunfire in the background. Like Yosef who was suddenly freed from Egyptian captivity, the captives went from chains to freedom within a few minutes.

But the viral footage was only the final, dramatic act of a story that played out over eight months.  It’s a story of fortitude and miraculous survival, and of a lifesaving camaraderie forged in a shared horror whose enormity only the three protagonists can really comprehend.

Now, months after Andrei, Shlomi,  and Almog have been freed from captivity, the news seems encouraging. Hamas has been flattened, Hezbollah has been dealt a serious blow, and Syria’s Assad is gone. But dozens of hostages are still captive in Gazan tunnels and squalid hideouts. As Israel and Hamas once again debate prisoner releases, for the first time, Shlomi and Almog share their story together. “We’re waiting for everyone to be released,” they say. “That’s our daily wish and prayer.”