Munder grandmother, daughter & grandson released; grandfather still captive

Ruti Munder, 78, Keren Munder, 54, and her son, Ohad, 9, were released on November 24 as part of a temporary ceasefire deal brokered by Qatar and the United States between Hamas and Israel. This is the story of their capture:

On October 7, Keren Munder, 54, and her son, Ohad, then 8, came to Kibbutz Nir Oz from Kfar Saba to visit their family for the Simchat Torah Shabbat.

Keren’s parents, Avraham and Ruti Munder, both 78, live at Nir Oz, as does their son, Keren’s brother, Roi Munder.

At 9:58 that morning, Ruti’s sister, Naomi Meiri, called her sister to ask, “What’s happening?”

“She whispered, ‘I can’t talk,'” said Meiri.

By 11 a.m., the phones of Avraham, Ruti and Keren were all located in Gaza, said family members.

They later found out that Roi Munder, Keren’s only brother who also lived on Nir Oz, had been killed.

When Roi was buried on October 22, there was no immediate family member present at the funeral or to sit shiva, the seven-day Jewish mourning period, for him.

“The whole world needs to stand on its own two feet and help us get them back, to restore faith in the human race,” said Osnat Meiri, cousin to Keren and niece to Avraham and Ruti.

Ohad turned nine while captive in Gaza. He is Keren Munder’s only child and the sole grandchild of Avraham and Ruti.

His family and friends say that Ohad loves playing tennis and soccer, along with chess and Rubik’s Cube.