Doron Asher Katz and her two young daughters, Raz and Aviv.Photo:Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Instagram
Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Instagram
An Israeli father is sharing details about his final phone call with his wife before she and their two young daughters were reportedly kidnapped duringHamas militants' invasionon Saturday.
Yoni Asher, 37, said he spoke with his 34-year-old wife, Doron Asher Katz, on the phone early Saturday morning while she was visiting her mother’s house with their daughters Raz, 5, and Aviv, 3.
Yoni toldThe New York Timesthat during the phone call, Doron whispered that there had been a home intrusion and she was hiding in a safe room with her mother and the girls. “She told me, ‘There are terrorists inside the house.'"
Doron’s mother has a partner, Gadi Moses, who attempted to make peace with the intruders while the others hid. “She said they left and they took [Moses] with them,” Yoni added. Then, the call was cut off.
Israeli soldiers ride a tank along the Israel-Gaza border as fighting with Hamas militants continues.Ilia Yefimovich/picture alliance via Getty
Ilia Yefimovich/picture alliance via Getty
Yoni said that he tracked his wife’s phone afterward and saw that it was transported to Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza — leaving him fearing his family had been kidnapped also.
The father of two said that his mother-in-law, Efrat Katz, 67, also appeared to be on the truck.
“Later on when I saw the video there was no doubt,” Yoni toldCNN. “My wife and my two little daughters were on this cart. I know for sure they are taken.”
Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Israel over the weekend.Cover Images via AP
Cover Images via AP
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuannounced Saturdaythat the country is “at war" after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack over the weekend. Approximately 2,200 rockets were fired in the attacks from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, CNN reported.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) shared, per CNN, that Hamas took “hostages and prisoners of war."
Yoni is now pleading for authorities to help bring his family home. “Please help us,” he said, perCNN. “We are begging for your help for you if you can do something.”
Elad Strohmayer, the director of congressional affairs for Israel’s Foreign Ministry, acknowledged the missing family on X on Saturday.
The death toll in the unprecedented Hamas attack is thought to now have reached over 1,100,NBC Newsreported on Monday.
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source: people.com
