43 million seconds in hell
500 days in captivity. 500 days under inhumane conditions. 500 days of suffering beyond description
Amir Ben-David is a journalist and senior writer at Zman Israel, The Times of Israel's sister Hebrew website. He's also a musician with the Israeli rock group “Avtipus” ("prototype"), a screenwriter and a novelist.
The number 500 hovers over Israel today, as we mark the 500th day since the October 7 massacre and the war that has raged ever since.
Five hundred black balloons were released into the sky near the border with the Gaza Strip. The number 500 is prominently displayed on the Azrieli Towers in Tel Aviv. It peers from newspaper front pages on every street corner. It flickers across all major Israeli news websites, will accompany every broadcast on television and radio, and is being mentioned by many teachers at the start of class.
For 500 days, Israel has been operating in parallel with the unbearable ticking of the hostages’ clock: 500 days in captivity; 500 days under inhumane conditions; 500 days of suffering beyond description.
At least 864 civilians were murdered on October 7, 2023. In the 500 days, at least 918 IDF soldiers, police officers, and other security personnel were killed — more than 300 of them on that horrific day.
Two hundred and fifty-one people — civilians, soldiers, and foreign nationals — were abducted to Gaza. Seventy of them are still being held by Hamas, including 35 whom Israel has declared were killed on October 7 or while in captivity. Another three hostages — two alive and one dead — have been held since before October 7.
We can take stock of the last 500 days of our own lives — marked by war on seven fronts, missile attacks on the home front, the assassinations of Mohammad Deif, Yahya Sinwar and Hassan Nasrallah, the exploding of Hezbollah’s pagers, hostage deals, sirens, sprints to bomb shelters, the fall of Assad’s regime in Syria. And that’s just on the war front.
There was also the Eurovision Song Contest, the Olympic Games in Paris, and an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, who ultimately won the US elections. In everyday life, there were love stories and weddings and births and university exams and vacations and new seasons of favored TV shows and work stress and family dinners and trips.
Life as we ordinarily know it.
A lot happens in 500 days. And all that time, they are there — shrinking in the tunnels, chained and beaten, unaware of the fate of their loved ones, severed from the world. Unsure if their country is doing everything to bring them home.
500 minutes of fasting
Numerous demonstrations are taking place across the country, calling for the release of all the hostages and in solidarity with their families.
The Hostages’ Families Forum has called on the public to fast for 500 minutes in solidarity with the hostages’ plight. “The recent days and the horrifying testimonies [of recently released hostages] demand immediate action,” the forum said in a statement. “This deal must not collapse — we must seize this momentum to reach a swift and responsible agreement for everyone.
“This day of fasting is nothing compared to the suffering they endure there. But it is a day of identification and solidarity, strengthening the hostages and amplifying the cries of those whose voices cannot be heard. There is no more time — we must act immediately to bring them all home.
“The fast will last 500 minutes, from 11:40 a.m. to 8 p.m., or alternatively, from sunrise to sunset. At the conclusion of the fast, an emergency rally will be held at Hostages’ Square with the participation of the hostages’ families.”
500 days of national vertigo
Former IDF chief of staff and current MK Gadi Eisenkot spent much of the war as a member of the security cabinet and government. He also lost his son, Gal, who was killed in the Gaza war. This morning, he was interviewed by Nadav Eyal in Yedioth Ahronoth, and he did not mince words.
“If Netanyahu does not grasp the immense significance of bringing the hostages back for Israel’s security resilience, it will be a tragedy for generations,” Eisenkot said. “The top priority is to implement the second phase of the hostage deal today and bring them home. It’s just another 42 days. And alongside that, we must make it absolutely clear that the future in Gaza does not include Hamas in government.”
Eisenkot had sharp words for Netanyahu. “What has characterized him in these 500 days is a lack of realism,” the MK said. “If Netanyahu does not bring the hostages back alive and simultaneously passes a draft-dodging law that allows tens of thousands [members of the ultra-Orthodox community] to evade service just to strengthen his coalition, he will be a prime minister who has severely harmed national resilience — to the point where he is unfit to serve as prime minister.”
Eisenkot added: “Netanyahu is in a state of vertigo. He no longer knows what is true and what is false, when it is day and when it is night. When a pilot is in vertigo, his flight team shouts, ‘Black is up, white is down.’ Someone needs to shout that at Netanyahu.”
500 days of an ongoing nightmare
The families of the recently released hostages and those still living in fear and uncertainty spoke this morning about the suffering their loved ones endured and continue to endure.
“The returned hostages told us they saw Matan. They said he had a serious injury to his hand,” Ophir Angrest, the younger brother of hostage Matan Angrest, told Ynet. “On the 500th day of this agony, I expect everyone to stop for a moment, close their eyes for a minute, and think about what it means to be 500 days underground, with your family not knowing your condition or even if you have food and water.”
The family of Alon Ohel also received distressing reports about his condition. “He has shrapnel in his eye, and he may lose his sight entirely,” his mother, Idit Ohel, shared. “Right now, he can only see shadows. Barely sees anything. If he doesn’t get treatment soon, he won’t be able to see at all. We know he is being held in chains — sometimes even with his hands bound. These are extremely harsh captivity conditions. Not humanitarian.”
Avital Dekel Chen, the wife of Sagui Dekel Chen, who was released on Saturday, recounted at a press conference at Sheba Medical Center on Sunday that Sagui had not seen daylight from the moment he was abducted until his release. Only on the day of his release did he learn that his family was alive.
“He said, ‘It’s nice that people count days, but it’s more accurate to say we were there for 43 million seconds of hell.’ The hostages don’t count days, or even minutes or hours. They count seconds.”
