Released hostage Braslavski in shock, would be killed if there had not been a deal, uncle says
Ze’ev, who agrees with Braslavski’s testimony, said they were shot at while he was in captivity, and that when Gaza was bombed, Braslavski and his captors were in the crosshairs – shells and bombs.
Rom Braslavski, who was released Monday after spending 738 days in Hamas captivity, is still in shock, his uncle Ze’ev said. walla Tuesday, adding that if there had been no agreement, he would have died.
“He is in shock, he does not really understand what is happening to him. After all, he was not in Thailand. For us, it is simply a miracle that he came out of this hell. If there had been no agreement, there would have been no one to release. I understand that by seeing him and also by what he tells me.”
According to Ze’ev, who agrees with Braslavski’s testimony, they were shot at while he was in captivity, and when Gaza was bombed, Braslavski and his captors were in the crosshairs – shells and bombs fell near them.
Once the terrorists realized that no agreement was in sight, their attitude towards Braslavski worsened.
“Less food, they starved them. A piece of bread in the morning and another spoonful of rice at noon – and that was it. Punishments, including physical. No light, no water, no showers, constant mental stress and fear. Every time the negotiations reached an impasse, the attitude changed dramatically. You are dealing with psychopaths,” emphasized the uncle of Braslavsky.
Rom Braslavski, taken hostage on October 7 at the Nova Music Festival. (credit: Hostage Families Forum, screenshot)
Throughout his captivity, Braslavski retained his faith, praying often, which his uncle said gave him mental strength. “The will to live, the inner strength to see us kept him going,” Ze’ev said. He wrote himself there, but at one point the terrorists confiscated what he had written. He spoke Arabic with his captors, and now he speaks Arabic fluently. From time to time he had other hostages with him, like Sasha Trufanov, but most of the time he was alone,” he explained.
Braslavski was not held underground for much of his captivity
Braslavski, who was not underground during his captivity, was moved from place to place, under frequently changing conditions. Sometimes he was held alone, but sometimes he was accompanied by other hostages, such as Sasha Trufanov.
Despite the difficulties, Braslavski’s faith and inner strength are still evident, as he reassures his mother: “Don’t worry, everything will be fine,” Ze’ev said.
According to Zeev, Braslavski saw him on television twice. “It gave him strength and joy to see that they were talking about him. He saw on the news channels that they were talking about the war. But there was only TV a few times. Rom was not underground and the conditions were constantly changing because they were moving them from place to place. Rom is shocked that the whole nation was obsessed with this. All of Israel and the world, even abroad. They were talking about it all day long. It shocked him. reinforced to see that the whole nation was with him. He can’t believe he’s so strong. it is well known that everyone knows him. He got off the helicopter, saw people greeting him and blessing him,” he said.
Ze’ev described to walla what happened this morning of October 7. “He saved people in Nova and saw horrors. From 6 a.m., when the chaos began, there was nowhere to escape. Rom says they were constantly thinking about how to save bodies and people,” he said.
“We were shooting at them all the time,” he said: ‘The bullets were constantly passing by us.’ All the police officers in his neighborhood are dead. He said: “I had nowhere to escape, so we jumped from place to place for hours. Everywhere we went there were bullets. He said the terrorists caught them with weapons and led them away. It’s crazy, like a horror movie,” Braslavski’s uncle said.
When Braslavski learned that other hostages had been freed, he was happy; he never said, “Why not me?” “When Avera Mengistu was released, he was very happy, and also when Edan Alexander was released. That’s the kind of person he is, he thinks of others first. Even now he reassures his mother: ‘Don’t worry, everything will be fine,'” Ze’ev said.
