Jews around the world will soon celebrate Passover, recounting the biblical story of their exodus from Egypt after hundreds of years of slavery. But for many Israelis it’s hard to fathom honoring an occasion focused on freedom, when friends and family are still in captivity.
Shlomi Berger sits in his daughter’s bedroom in Holon, Israel , Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Agam, 19, was abducted two days after the start of her army service along the border with Gaza during a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. “The Passover story says we come from slaves to free people, so this is a parallel story,” Berger said. “This is the only thing I believe that will happen. That Agam will get out from darkness to light. She and all of the other hostages.
Gat, his arms and legs bound, was shoved into a car with his wife and daughter. During a brief stop, they managed to flee. Knowing he could run faster, Roman-Gat handed him their daughter. Gat escaped with her, hiding in a ditch for nearly nine hours. His wife was recaptured and held in Gaza for 54 days.
Still, Passover will be overshadowed by deep sorrow and worry for her sister-in-law and the other hostages, she said. The family will mark the holiday with a low-key dinner in a restaurant, without celebration. The hostages’ pain has reverberated around the world, with some in the Jewish diaspora asking rabbis for prayers specifically for the hostages and Israel to be said at this year’s Seder. Others have created a new Haggadah, the book read during the Seder, to reflect the current reality.
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