Once at the hospital, the father-of-11 was greeted by dozens of his family members, including his one-year-old child, who was born only two months prior to the kidnapping.
Family members told the media that in captivity, Al-Qadi was fed only little bits of bread and “not every day.” Al-Qadi apparently asked his family members for shakshuka.
He also received a personal phone call from President Isaac Herzog, who welcomed Al-Qadi’s return from captivity.
“Our brother has come home. Our brother has returned!” Herzog told Al-Qadi. “You went through hell there.”
Al-Qadi urged him to work to free all the remaining hostages. “People are really suffering, you can’t imagine. Suddenly, I heard someone speaking Hebrew outside the door, I couldn’t believe it,” he told the president.
At least 104 Israeli hostages, out of 251 kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, still remain in captivity in Gaza. Out of these, at least 34 hostages are believed to be dead, and their bodies are being held by Hamas terrorists.
In November, 105 hostages were freed in a prisoner exchange deal brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar. Another eight were rescued alive in various IDF operations in the strip.
Produced in association with ISRAEL21c
