For Maayan Zin, every day since October 7 has been a living hell. When Hamas attacked Israel, her daughters, Dafna, 15, and Ella, 8, were in Nahal Oz with their father Noam, his partner Dikla and her 17-year-old son Tomer.
Earlier this week, The bodies of Noam, Dikla and Tomer were identified. The girls are still missing and are presumed to be held in Gaza.
“I don't even know what's worse - what they did to my daughters? What they did to Tomer? To other children? To other parents?” she said.
“Do they even have any humanity left?” she added. “They took Tomer on a walk through Nahal Oz, calling out to people in Hebrew to leave their homes. And when they came out, they shot them dead right in front of his eyes. He was a kind and gentle boy. Just 17 years old, still a child at heart. What kind of barbarism is this?”
'This is how my mother pled for her life'
Tomer Tal Alfasi has also been going through a similar nightmare.
"The abduction video is shocking, but at least we have a starting point for action," says Tal. "Since Saturday morning, I've been waiting for any information, and nobody has given us anything. They tell you to 'go here, go there.' I understood and followed their instructions, but I wanted someone to tell me something. At least with the video, I could see that they were alive and unharmed, thank God."
"I was certain she was gone," adds Sigal Sharabi, Merav's sister, "but the video gave me a glimmer of hope that I could hold onto. I love her so much and care for her children. Despite all the suffering, hope remains. We are strong, and we will stand united as a family. No one will break us. I believe she will come back."