President Issac Herzog pays tribute to the “extraordinary courage” of Romi Gonen after the former Israeli hostage detailed the sexual assault she suffered at the hands of her captors in an interview with Channel 12.
“Romi Gonen’s testimony is heartbreaking,” the president writes on X above a clip of the interview. “In a trembling voice, yet with extraordinary courage, Romi revealed the hell she endured in Hamas captivity – sexual violence and… systematic attempts to crush the human spirit. Her story must be told everywhere, so that all will remember what we endured as a people, what the hostages endured, and what Romi endured.”
He adds, “Romi, you are a true hero. We salute your courage.”
Gonen was kidnapped from the Nova music festival during the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023. She was released during a ceasefire in January 2025.
In the interview, which aired on Thursday night, she described being sexually assaulted multiple times by her captors.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Friday, December 26, 2025
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
