In 470 days, Eitan Gonen asked his daughter in endless interviews: "Hold on to life". If she heard him, he had no idea. Yet, he ended each interview with the same hopeful phrase: "Romi will come home alive."
When his daughter was released on January 19, the father got his answer: she had heard him.
She said: "Dad, I came home alive". Now I know that my interviews gave Romi a lot of strength and hope, something to hold on to.
24-year-old Romi Gonen was one of three hostages released by Hamas on the same day the ongoing ceasefire came into effect. After 471 days in Gaza, many of them underground, the road ahead is long and difficult.
Rehabilitation has only just begun, says Eitan Gonen.
Hid in bushes
Much is still uncertain about the time in Gaza – the family does not want to pressure her to talk about her experiences. Instead, they are trying to give their daughter control, letting her set the pace and letting everything take its time.
Like many of the 250 Israelis taken hostage during Hamas' terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war, Romi Gonen was kidnapped from the Nova music festival.
That morning, her mother and sister talked to her on the phone non-stop for almost five hours. Romi told them that she tried to hide in the bushes because the roads were blocked by abandoned cars. Then, the contact was broken.
For nearly two months, the family did not know if their daughter was alive or not. It was not until other hostages were released during a brief ceasefire in November that they found out that Romi was being held captive in Gaza, the father explains.
Spoke Arabic at home
Eitan Gonen praises his daughter's strength and smartness. She survived for so many months partly due to her determination to learn Arabic, he says.
People do whatever it takes to survive. Whatever it takes. Since the terrorists didn't speak any other language than Arabic, she had no other choice but to learn it, in order to communicate with them.
Several times since her release, Romi has seemingly unconsciously spoken Arabic at home. Out of habit, the father assumes.
On Saturday, three more hostages were released. Eitan Gonen is still working to put pressure on the government to get the remaining hostages released. But above all, he is focusing on spending time with his daughter.
I'm enjoying being with her so much, even if we just sit in silence. To touch her, hug her, look at her. I've missed it so much.
During the Hamas terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, around 250 people were taken hostage, most of them Israelis, and were taken to Gaza. There, they have been held by Hamas and other armed extremist groups that participated in the October 7 attack.
During a week-long ceasefire in November 2023, over 100 hostages were exchanged for 240 Palestinian prisoners. Several more Israelis have been freed by the country's military, and around 30 have been brought home after being killed.
Several more have been released in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel during the ceasefire that came into effect on January 19 this year.
Currently, around 90 people from the hostage group are estimated to be still in Gaza. Of these, about a third are believed to be dead.
