From the Liveblog of
Sunday, February 23, 2025
Mother of freed hostage Omer Shem Tov says he was alone in a tunnel for 450 days of captivity
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center
Shelly Shem Tov, the mother of freed hostage Omer Shem Tov, says her son was kept alone in a tunnel the vast majority of his time in captivity.
Speaking to the media during a press conference at the Rabin Medical Center, Shelly says that her son, who was kidnapped from the Nova festival, was kept for 450 days alone in a tunnel, where he suffered.
He dreamed, he told her, of being able to lay his head on his mother’s lap and have her stroke his hair, and going to ride with his father on his motorcycle. She recounts that Omer said he only finally breathed again when he first met the IDF forces.
Shelly offers gratitude and recognition to murdered hostage Ori Danino, who on October 7 went back into the massacre taking place at the Nova rave to pull out siblings Maya and Itay Regev, and Omer. All four were taken hostage, with the Regev siblings freed in November 2023 and Danino was slain in captivity in August 2024.
“He didn’t think about himself or his family, just that you don’t leave anyone behind,” she says. “He is the hero and the angel who saved them.”
Shelly also offers her thanks to all the IDF soldiers killed, and their families, and says she will always be with them. She says everything is because of their sacrifice and their courage.
The Times of Israel Community.