Released SA-born hostage describes horrific conditions in Gaza

Freed South African-born hostage Aviva Siegel wakes every day tormented by thoughts of her husband of 40 years who is still incarcerated in Gaza.

The past 104 days have been a heart wrenching time of fear, pain, resilience, and ultimately love as Siegel slowly opens up and shares her horrific ordeal in captivity. She’s doing it in a desperate bid to tell the world what the hostages are going through and to urge legislators to secure their immediate release.

Siegel, 62, and her husband, Keith, 64, who is a dual American-Israeli citizen, were abducted from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during the brutal Hamas massacre of 7 October. She was released on 26 November during a truce brokered by Qatar and Egypt. However, there are 136 hostages – some who may no longer be alive – still being held by Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza.

With an indescribable heaviness, Aviva left the love of her life behind and has promised to remain strong and do everything she can to bring him home to be reunited with their four children and five grandchildren.

Wherever she goes, her message is clear: “It’s enough, they need to come home, and they need to come home now. Before it’s too late.”

Having endured 51 days in captivity herself amid a war zone fraught with hostile terrorists, Siegel’s release hasn’t brought solace but a daily ache for her spouse’s safe return. “I can’t explain what a horrible feeling it was leaving him there,” she told PBS NewsHour on 2 January.

Born Adrienne Kuritzky, she grew up with her twin sister, Fiona Wax, and their younger sister, Sandy Feldman, in Randfontein on the West Rand before making aliya.

Wax this week told the SA Jewish Report that her sister had been through “hell”.

“Some of the stories are too painful to talk about,” said Wax. “Aviva is strong, but the mornings are hard for her. She starts thinking about Keith being there and whether he’ll ever come home.

“Their captors were cruel and didn’t treat them like human beings,” said Wax. “They humiliated them, pushed them around, forced them to lie down and keep quiet for hours, made them speak in a whisper, and moved them from place to place. Aviva said they became like puppets, told what to do, and they did it.”

Wax said the family left for Israel when she was nine, frequently visiting South Africa to see relatives.

A few years ago, Wax revisited the family home in Randfontein. “It is still there, but now it’s a Christian ministry. Our parents’ shop, which traded as Economic Stores selling bikes, bicycles, and toys, is still there in Main Street, but now it’s a fruit shop.” It saddens the sisters how hostile the South African government is towards Israel.

Haunted by the memories of her ordeal, Siegel has described her captors as monsters, yet she refuses to succumb to despair, having promised Keith to remain strong for him and their family. Since her release, she has tirelessly advocated for his release, stressing the urgency of his return before it’s too late.

Supported by her family, Aviva has tentatively opened up about the gruesome experience, shedding light on the terror she faced during her captivity. The Siegel family’s unwavering hope and resilience manifests in its relentless campaign for Keith’s release, a mission it has undertaken with determination and courage.

As the world marked 100 days last weekend since the massacre, the Siegel family’s anguish has deepened, and their plea for Keith’s safe return has resonated across the country and globally.

Siegel has been to the White House, met President Joe Biden, addressed the Knesset, and attended numerous vigils, including one organised by Telfed in Ra’anana, to raise awareness and fight for the hostages’ release.

At the Knesset earlier this month, Siegel described the brutality experienced by the abductees being held by Hamas. She told how one day, a young hostage returned from the bathroom upset and Siegel was prevented from hugging her by the terrorist. At this point, Siegel realised that the girl’s mood was unusual – shut down, quiet.

“And forgive me, I will say bad words, but this son of a bitch touched her. And he wouldn’t even let me hug her after it happened. It’s terrible, it’s just terrible. I told her I was sorry,” Siegel told the legislators.

She spoke about another incident when the captors tortured another young abductee because they mistook her for an Israel Defense Forces officer.

“They tortured her next to me. I’m a witness to it. I’m a witness to what’s happening there. What’s happening there is simply a catastrophe. It’s impossible to continue.”

She told PBS NewsHour that for the 51 days she was held captive, she never believed she’d return alive. “We were sure we were going to die,” she said. They were scared all the time, and witnessed lots of violence including sexual assault and torture. “I’m lucky that I’m old and I wasn’t touched. But I do know that it’s true. I was there. And it’s terrible. I don’t want to talk about it. We need to get them out as quickly as possible.”

She and Keith, who were mostly held together, were moved 13 times to different locations above and below ground in terror tunnels. During their abduction, he had been shot in the hand and had several broken ribs.

Hamas told them they were never going back to Israel, and that Israel had been destroyed.

“I believed them,” she said.

On the day of her release, she was hardly allowed to say goodbye to Keith, but was adamant. “I gave him a big, huge hug and I said, ‘You be strong for me, I’ll be strong for you.’ Because I didn’t know if I’d ever see him again.”

Aviva’s sister-in-law and close friend, Sheli Siegel, who grew up in Johannesburg, told the SA Jewish Report this week that the family were taking it one day at a time. “It’s a difficult period. My husband worries for his brother, and does all he can to raise awareness. It has been more than 100 days, so he goes to work with a heaviness.

“Aviva is incredible. She displays so much strength. I’m in awe of her. She desperately wants Keith home, and is trying her best to stay strong.”

Said Flax, “It’s a daily rollercoaster of emotions. We live day to day, minute by minute. We’re happy when we hear good news, but there are many days when we feel depressed and despondent. We have had no word about the hostages, the waiting is agonising.”