America urges international community to demand the return of hostages in Gaza
An American family held hostage by Hamas tells of their abduction; rather than their death; as “the worse of two evils.”
Abbey Onn lived in Israel for eight years; Five of his loved ones living near the Gaza border don’t know what happened after the terror group Hamas attacked their community of Nir Oz on Saturday morning.
American families in Israel worried about kidnapped loved ones
“The last messages we saw were; around 11 or 12 in the morning; they said they didn’t know what was going on and they were scared,” Onn told Fox News; “And one of them said it was the Holocaust.”
After that, the messages stopped; Hours later, Israel Defense Forces regained control of the area and discovered that Hamas had burned down an entire community.
Over the weekend, Hamas fired thousands of rockets into Israel; With hundreds of terrorists attacking on foot; Breaking the barrier between Gaza and Israel, and massacring civilians in nearby areas. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a “total siege” of Gaza; Bombing over 2,300 “Hamas targets”.
Hamas kills 1,200 in Israel; including 22 Americans. Israel’s retaliation killed 1,000 in Gaza; According to Palestinian officials.
“It was so much chaos; I think it’s still chaos,” Onn said. “Managing to find out who was alive and who wasn’t wasn’t something that took a matter of hours.”
Five of her family members lived in a house together in the community: her cousin Carmela Dan, 80; Dan’s son-in-law, Ofer Kalderon, 50; and three grandchildren Sahar Kalderon, 16; Erez Calderón, 12; and Noya Dan, 13. Onn did not know if they were among the dead.
“It wasn’t until we saw the video that Hamas uploaded of Erez in their hands being dragged along with them that we understood that they had been taken hostage,” she said.
Hamas is believed to have taken up to 150 hostages since their weekend attack.
Realizing Hamas abducted her family offered little relief.
“I think it’s the worse of two evils,” she said.
Her fears were compounded when Hezbollah, an Iran-backed terrorist group based in Lebanon, went on the offensive against Israel days after Hamas’s attack.
Although separate groups, Hezbollah congratulated Hamas for its strike on Israel and launched anti-tank missiles at an Israeli military position in a northern town on the Israel-Lebanon border.
“I’m concerned about everything,” Onn told Fox News. “I think that I’m trying to operate on adrenaline and not think too deeply about things that are beyond my control, the military and the government.”
The U.S. and other Western allies have warned Hezbollah not to get involved and escalate the war.
“Let me say again, to any country, any organization, anyone thinking of taking advantage of the situation, I have one word: Don’t. Don’t,” President Biden said Tuesday. “Our hearts may be broken, but our resolve is clear.”
Onn said she believes Biden’s message will stick.
“At some point, people will listen, that they should not get involved, that it would be a massive mistake,” she said. “But as a mother of three children, of course, I am afraid. I would be stupid not to be.”
Despite Hamas’ threats and Hezbollah attacking Israel on a second front, Onn maintains hope that the international community will save her family.
“We as an international community should stand up against terror,” she said. “I think that everyone that has a voice needs to raise it and speak out and ask for these hostages to be brought back.”