Brother reveals fears for sister in Hamas tunnels
THE OLDER brother of 19-year-old hostage Naama Levy has said the possibility that his sister has been sexually assaulted is “a fear that I go to sleep with every night and wake up with every morning”.
Sharing Naama’s story during a meeting with MPs at Westminster, 21-yearold Amit Levy’s voice cracked as he said: “You’ve probably seen the video of Naama being dragged by the hair, hands bound, into a jeep at gunpoint somewhere in Gaza.”
Naama, who Amit called a “gentle and loving soul” and “the kindest person I know”, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nahal Oz on October 7.
In the widely circulated video from that fateful day, Naama’s grey sweatpants appear stained with blood around the crotch area, which has convinced many that she — along with countless other October 7 victims — was subjected to sexual violence.
“It’s very, very hard to stay optimistic,” said Amit, who came to the UK as part of a delegation of hostages’ relatives to keep the issue at the top of the government’s agenda.
“My mom can’t sleep and everyone is worried sick about what Naama, as a teenager, may be going through.
“I can’t help but feel that
I failed to keep her safe. I can’t imagine the horrors she must be going through every day and with every passing hour. This situation is a nightmare for my family personally and for many other families, but it’s also a historic moment for the world, and we all must stand on the right side of history. The clock is ticking. Every minute the hostages stay in Gaza is too long. Time is running out for them. Please help us bring my sister back.”
Amit added: “We know that their bodies and their souls won’t be able to go through this much and stay alive.”
The all-party parliamentary group meeting, led by MPs Stephen Crabb and Margaret Hodge and organised in partnership with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, included testimonies from several other relatives of hostages.
Twenty-one-year-old hostage Omer Shem Tov’s brother Amit Shem Tov, 23, also shared his heart-wrenching story, explaining how his family tracked Omer’s live location on the morning of October 7 and were disturbed to find that his phone appeared to be moving towards Gaza. In the evening, a friend called; they had found a video of Omer with his hands tied, lying in the back of a pickup truck on top of guns.
“My mom did not want to see it at first, but once she was ready to see it, she started crying and screaming, and that’s the worst I’ve ever seen my mom,” said Shem Tov.
Shem Tov said that his brother has two medical conditions; asthma and coeliac disease. Omer does not have his inhaler, and according to accounts shared by released hostages, most of the food offered to hostages is bread, which those with coeliac disease cannot digest. More than 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza.