Israeli mother and children with NYC connections released by Hamas
The Israeli hostages released by Hamas over the last 48 hours include Hagar Brodutch and her three children, who are among eight hostages with ties to the New York City area.
Brodutch, 40, was kidnapped from her home at Kibbutz Kfar Aza with her daughter Ofri, 10, and sons Yuval, 8, and Uryah, 4. They were held captive in Gaza for over 50 days and released Sunday.
Their family learned last week that Brodutch and her children were on a preliminary list of women and children who potentially could be freed, said New Yorker Navé Strauss, Brodutch’s cousin. However, it wasn’t until late Saturday, after an agonizing wait, that they finally received the final word that the four would be released.
“It was sort of an excruciating weekend while we waited for Hagar and her kids to be released,” Strauss said.
“But now, they’re back in Israel.”
The family lost weight while in captivity, but otherwise is in good physical health, their cousin said. They also seem to be in shock from the experience.
Strauss hasn’t spoken yet to his cousin, but has talked to Brodutch’s father and sister. He was overjoyed to see them return to safety and reunite with their loved ones and the family dog.
The family was part of a group of 17 hostages who were exchanged for the release of 39 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel on Sunday.
Abigail Edan, a 4-year-old American dual citizen, was also part of this third round of hostages released on Sunday, marking the first release of an American hostage since the start of the cease-fire.
Around 50 Israeli hostages have been released. A two-day extension of the delicate cease-fire was announced by Qatar on Monday, signaling a longer pause in the fighting may soon follow.
Israel’s retaliatory counteroffensive in Gaza has claimed more than 14,000 lives, according to estimates.
Many families are still anxiously waiting for word that their loved ones will be released, and calls continue for the release of all 240 hostages.
“It’s bittersweet,” Strauss said. “We’re really thankful and trying to just appreciate this moment objectively, and then, you know, there’s the bigger picture of all the hostages who we just we all feel need to be back.”
The Brodutch family was reunited with father Avichai Brodutch at a hospital near Tel Aviv on Sunday.
“Not surprisingly, Hagar did not know that her husband is still alive,” Strauss said. “So that must have been an extraordinary moment of happiness and relief.”
The family is also grappling with the changed world into which they’ve emerged, he said.
While held hostage, the Brodutch family didn’t know the full extent of what happened on Oct. 7; that they wouldn’t be able to return home to Kfar Aza, their kibbutz; and that they and the hostages have become larger-than-life symbols of the conflict, with their pictures plastered on posters all over the world.
“Hagar’s sister was telling me on the phone yesterday how she was trying to explain that to the kids,” Strauss said. “And you can imagine how difficult it is trying to convey anything like that to children, even if it didn’t happen to them directly, let alone directly like, ‘People know who you are.’ There’s so much unpacking and processing that needs to happen.”