An Israeli mom broke down in tears as she informed how she and her daughters escaped seize by Hamas however her husband and son have been taken hostage.
Batsheva Yehalomi informed Sky News she and her household woke at round 6.30am on 7 October to the sound of “gunshots outside the house” and “many rockets”.
She and her husband Ohad together with their three youngsters – a 12-year-old son, a 10-year-old daughter and an 18-month-old child lady – ran to their protected room.
Mrs Yehalomi informed Sky’s Kay Burley: “We went into the safe room and we waited there. Then we understood something was very different.
“We heard gunshots exterior of the home – on the home windows and the partitions. We heard individuals shouting ‘Allah Akbar’ in Arabic. We smelt hearth and smoke – it was very, very scary.”
Follow latest: ‘Very difficult period’ ahead for IDF in Gaza
More than 200 individuals have been taken hostage by Hamas into Gaza throughout the preliminary assaults on 7 October.
They are considered contained in the community of underground tunnels Hamas has constructed underneath the territory.
So far, one hostage has been freed by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) and 4 have been launched.
After two hours within the protected room, Ms Yehalomi’s husband left to see what was taking place.
“He went out. He had a small gun and he waited,” she recalled.
“At about 10am, the terrorist bombed the house – and they shot the door and they shot my husband.
“They opened the door to the protected room and my and my three youngsters have been sitting collectively. They began shouting at us, pointing at us with their weapons and speaking in Arabic. But they mentioned ‘come, come’ in English.
“They wanted to take us into Gaza, so we went out of the safe room and we saw my husband sitting on the floor, injured, bleeding, but he was talking to us.
“He informed us he loves us and that we must always go together with them.”
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Mrs Yehalomi tried to put her baby girl in her husband’s arms in the hope they wouldn’t take her – but they did, she said.
Through tears, she described how she and her children were placed on motorcycles with men from Hamas.
When her baby started to cry, she was passed her by one of the men – leaving her, her daughter and the baby on one bike – and her 12-year-old son Eitan alone with a man on the other.
Through tears, she said: “We began driving via Gaza. We noticed a number of terrorists. We noticed the kibbutz burning – every little thing was burning.”
‘We do not know if he is alive or not’
Mrs Yehalomi recalled how two IDF tanks showing close to the border with Gaza shocked the boys on the bikes – inflicting hers to crash and giving her the possibility to flee.
She mentioned: “Our motorcycle was falling. This was the last time I saw my son. His motorcycle continued together.”
An emotional Ms Yehalomi added: “We ran away. We managed to escape through the fields.
“We went three-and-a-half hours. It was very scary as a result of we noticed on a regular basis terrorists round us and lots of rockets above.
“But we managed to arrive to the northern part of the kibbutz. I’d seen from afar it wasn’t burning there so I decided to go there.”
Once again within the kibbutz, she was helped by Israeli troopers who enabled her to name her husband’s sister and instruct her to go to their home to seek out him.
But she mentioned: “I thought he was there, but after many hours someone entered the house and he was not there – they took him also.
“We do not know if he is alive or not – he is injured. So my husband, my son – I do not know what is going on on with them.”
Woman’s ‘nightmare’ after five family members kidnapped
Hadas Kalderon spoke to Sky News about her family – five of whom were kidnapped on 7 October.
“Five members of my family have been kidnapped – two of them have been murdered already,” she mentioned.
“The whole reason I came the whole way here is I want to save my children that are still alive.
“I’m speaking to your coronary heart and all the UK’s hearts, all of the individuals, you in all probability have households.
“I want you to imagine for one minute your small young child has been taken, in a cruel way, from their safe house – their bed – with just pyjamas – no shoes – taken suddenly and then disappeared for unknown time. You don’t know when you’ll see them again.”
She described how after years “under bombs” her 12-year-old son suffers from panic assaults and is unable to sleep with out his mom and his toys.
“He can’t sleep alone, he needs me,” she mentioned. “It’s one month now. Every day we wake for hell – this nightmare.”
Israeli officers are demanding the unconditional launch of all of the hostages being held by Hamas.
Source: information.sky.com”