top of page
Released Israeli hostage Yarden Roman-Gat fights for sister-in-law's return from Gaza (CBC-60 min)
2023-12-18 (218)
Israeli hostage Yarden Roman-Gat, now reunited with her husband and daughter after 54 days in Gaza, spent the day after her release hoping her sister-in-law Carmel would be the next to come home.
But Carmel wasn't released. Though more than 100 hostages taken into Gaza during Hamas' deadly Oct. 7 attack have been released, roughly 130 remain in the hands of Hamas. Yarden Roman-Gat, along with her husband Alon, are still fighting for Carmel's return.
What happened to the family on Oct. 7?
The couple were in Kibbutz Be'eri, near the Gaza border, visiting Alon's parents when Hamas stormed in, they said. Alon's mother was dragged outside and shot dead. His sister Carmel disappeared.
Fighters shoved Alon, Yarden and their 3-year-old daughter Geffen into a car and took off. When an Israeli tank passed by, the captors got out and hid in some trees, leaving Alon, Yarden and Geffen behind with an unarmed driver.
The parents seized the moment and took off. Yarden had been holding Geffen, but she's not a good runner, so she passed their daughter to Alon.
"He's a very good runner," she said. "I just passed her on. It was a no-brainer. It was her best chances."
Alon ran ahead with their daughter, gunfire ringing out as he ran for safety.
He found a ditch and hid with Geffen, wondering if he should go out and look for his wife.
"I thought about all these things," he said. " And I said 'No.' I have one mission now. And this is to save Geffen."
The pair were in the ditch from around 11:30 that morning until about 8 p.m.
Yarden's capture
As her husband and daughter hid, Yarden, too exhausted to keep running, fell to the ground as her captors closed in. She tried to play dead, but was quickly found out.
"They grabbed my arms and started dragging me on the ground towards, back to the car," she said.
Yarden, who'd been in pajamas, said her clothes were pulled from her body as she was dragged.
And it was one of, one of the most frightening moments because my thoughts were, 'Even if they didn't have that intention, now they might have, and I'm half naked," she said.
Like other hostages, she was driven into Gaza through thick crowds of celebrating people.
"My kidnappers could not help themselves, showing me off as a trophy," she said.
54 days in captivity
"I was watched and seen at all times. I was not hidden, not for a moment," she said. "They could do anything to me."
There are some details of her time in captivity Yarden did not want to share.
"They did not want to protect me. They wanted to guard their trophy," she said. "But I do think I managed to make them care, I don't know, in some levels. And I do think it helped me survive."
Sometimes Yarden could hear news on the radio. About three weeks into her captivity, she happened to catch one of Alon's cousins speaking. The cousin mentioned that Yarden and Carmel were being held, but he didn't mention Alon or Geffen, so Yarden assumed her husband and daughter were OK.
Though she felt relief about Alon and Geffen, she was tormented thinking about Carmel because of the almost constant explosions of the Israeli bombs leveling neighborhoods all across Gaza.
"It's a very, very frightening experience to be on a war zone," she said. "You cannot ignore it. It's very intense."
Returning to her home in Israel
Yarden and Carmel's family waged a campaign for their release. They even traveled to Washington for help. Eventually, all the pressure paid off; late last month, Israel temporarily ceased the bombing and Hamas agreed to release some hostages, mostly women and children, in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners. Under the terms of the deal, three Palestinian prisoners were to be released for every one hostage freed.
Every night, the phone would ring with news of who was on the release list, Yarden's brother, Gili Roman, said.
"That was the twisted reality show that we lived in," Roman said.
Once the hostage releases started, the entire country was glued to television, as each transfer was covered live. But for five excruciating days, neither Yarden nor Carmel were on the list.
Then came day six of the temporary cease-fire. After 54 days, Yarden's captors told her she was going home.
"They wondered, 'Why aren't I'm happy?'" Yarden said. "They almost demanded it. 'Be happy, be happy already. You're going home.'"
The family gathered around a TV that night and watched as Yarden crossed out of Gaza and was transported to Israel. Alon woke Geffen up around 2 a.m.
"'We found Mommy,'" he remembered telling her. "'We found Mommy and she's coming back.'"
The temporary cease-fire ended on Dec. 1 without Carmel's return.
Alon is still fighting for his sister, now with his wife by his side.
"My sister-in-law Carmel and a bunch of other hostages are still in Gaza," Yarden siad. "And it's wrong. And we have to stop it. And if we can do anything to help that, we will."
Video Transcription:
It's been one horror and tragedy after
the next since hamas's killing and
kidnapping attack of Israelis 10 weeks
ago on Friday three hostages were
accidentally killed by Israeli forces
even though we now know they were waving
a white flag, this as the Army's pounding
of Gaza continues unabated as much as
90% of the population has been displaced
and the death toll keeps risinging
about 100 Israeli hostages have been
released mostly women and children but
as many as 130 remain in captivity an
open wound in Israel, where we went this
past week and spoke to one of the
hostages who was freed after 54 days
36-year-old Yarden Roman Gat, she and her
husband Alon Gat were abducted on October
7th at a kibutz near the Gaza border
Alon took us to the rubble that
was his parents' home in Beeri, this is the
the entrance, on October 7th he, his wife
Yardan and their three-year-old daughter
Gefen were visiting his folks when
Hamas stormed the kibuts gate broke into
their home dragged out his mother and shot her
his sister Carmel disappeared and
the Hamas fighter shoved the three of
them into a car and took off, and they
are taking us into Gaza, you're driving
along there in the car, yeah, this is the
area where they drove the car to, and
there is a small Army Post over there
and this is the place where they stoped
the car because there was a tank passing
the terorists went out of the car to hide
in the trees, he and Yarden sees the
moment and we just jumped off, both
sides and started running, you had Gefen?
I had Gaffin on me, I'm not a good runner
and running with the 12 KG of my baby
the best odds is that Alon would
take her and he's a very good runner
I just passed her on, it was a no-brainer
it was her best chances so you passed
your child along to Alon, yeah, so I took
Gefen and I ran in front, we started to
hear the terrorist shooting at us so we
hearing bullets whistling next to us on
my both sides really close by I'm
talking about that distance of me and
you're carrying, and I'm with Gefen, and I
found a small crack in the ground like a
small ditch? yeah, yes, and I put Gefen
down on the on the ground and I was on
her lying there with Gefen trying to
keep her quiet and all this time you
still don't know what had happened to
your wife, it's something that I thought
about should I go with Gefen and search
for Yarden is Yarden, is she wounded is
she hurt, I thought about all these
things and I said no, I have one Mission
now and this is to save Gefe, how long
were you in the ditch? from 11:30 a.m.
to around 8:00 p.m. 9 hour? s about
and Gefen was amazing, she didn't cry about
food or water once she told me Daddy
it's a shame we didn't bring water
hours earlier Yarden too exhausted to keep
running fell to the ground as her
captors closed in, I played dead but
holding my breath was next to impossible
so they said, no she's not dead
there's no blood so pick her up, and they
grabbed my arms and started dragging me
on the ground towards back to the car
I went in pajamas, and my clothes tried to
swipe off my body and it was one
of one of the most frightening moments
because my thoughts were even if they
didn't have that
intention, now they might have, and I'm
half naked so you're worried about rape
yeah, I was worried to get raped
yeah, of course
and fortunately enough they didn't do it
and they were, the the goal was get me
into Gaza like other hostages she was
driven into Gaza through thick crowds
celebrating, my kidnappers could not help
themselves showing me off
as a trophy and showing my face as
an object, I was not a person, but but
the windows were up right no one could
reach, no, they were not up there were a
lot of people around and as we,
yelling and, yeah partying
after similar gauntlets of
Terror many other hostages were taken
down into the dark airless tunnels
Yardan was never underground, and where
did they take you? eventually we got uh
to a house I was alone but I was never
alone because I had my Guardian guardian
guards, guards with me
24/7 from the second I got to Gaza to the
second I
left were they men or women or both or
only men, only men, you cannot object to
anything it could cost you your life
she was given a hijab that covered most of
her body. I got a very strong
feeling this is my that that fabric is
my only
protection that
I don't know its effectivess but it was
the only thing I got you could feel
hidden a little bit behind that formless
the word
hidden has no place, I was watched and
seen at all times I was not
hidden, not For a moment, they could do
anything to me, I was helpless
did you try to engage them so they would
see you as a human
I'm trying to make them care did
it work do you think they began to want
to protect you? they did not want to
protect me, they wanted to guard their
trophy but I do think I managed to make
them care I don't know in some
levels and
I do think it helped me survive. do you
think that at some level you just shut
down you know just almost as if it was
happening to another person, no no you
were it was happening to me yeah there
are details about her captivity that she
didn't want to share with us
did they feed you? what you can't talk about it?
That okay. She lived with persistent
anxiety over the fate of Elon and Gefen
then 3 weeks in because she could
occasionally overhear news on a radio
she happened to catch one of Alon's
cousins speaking, and he mentioned by the
way the fact that I am and Carmel my
sister-in-law were held in Gaza, you
heard your name come up on radio, yeah
but it didn't mention Alon and Gefen so
I could pretty much assume
that they were fine. along with relief
about her husband and child she was
tormented about Carmel because of the
almost constant explosions of the
Israeli bombs leveling neighborhoods all
across Gaza, were you afraid that that
was going to kill you? yes, it's a very
frightening experience to be on a war zone
you cannot ignore it, it's very
intense
meanwhile in Israel there was a growing
"bring them home now" movement to pressure
the government to prioritize the
hostages. bring them back home now, now,
now, now, posters of the hostages are
everywhere this is Romy Gonen who was
shot and kidnapped for her mother mirav
it's October 7th every day outside
they're not fed they're starved we know
the about um sexual harassment of the
women that left there and of the men
also that treated with cruelty the ones
that stayed there and it's important to
understand that they don't have time
Yarden's family waged their own
campaign setting up a war room to get
her and Carmel freed even traveling to
Washington for help, eventually all the
pressure paid off, last month Israel
agreed to Cease the Bombing and free
some Palestinian prisoners and Hamas
issued a daily list of hostages it would
free the next day, every day mostly it's
night in the middle of the night we
would get a phone call of whether we are
on or off the list. Yarden's brother Gilly
the way it played out was Hamas would
announce who's coming out tomorrow that
was the twisted reality show that we
lived in, yes that is what happened, once
the hostage releases started the entire
country was glued to television as each
transfer was covered live, but for five
excruciating days neither Yardan nor
Carel were on the list, then came day six
of the ceasefire
after 54 days Yardan captors
told her you're getting out
they wondered why aren't I'm happy,
they almost demanded it, be happy be
happy already you're going home, you know
some of the hostages were given drugs to
make sure that they looked Happy, Well
treated, if they.... I don't want to go there,
you don't? okay. on the night of her
release her family the entire War Room
gathered around a television and as she
crossed out of
Gaza oh escorted by her captors yardan
was handed over to the Red Cross and
transported to Israel. I woke up Gefen
around uh 2:00 in the morning I woke
here and I told her we found Mommy we
found Mommy and she's coming back
the reunion, the embrace took place
at a hospital the first stop for all the
released hostages, the last time Yarden
had seen her daughter was 54 days
earlier when she handed her over to Alon
so it it hasn't been that long since she
came home, is she still the same person
yeah, she is? I think she is, yeah
are you the same person? no I'm a
different person
I'm tearing apart between finding
more info about Carmel, my mother was
murdered so also, I didn't have time
to mourn on that, I was dis connected
emotionally and I think still, I am
Alon's old kibutz is now rose and rows
of burned out houses. This is Gefen's
Swing with painful reminders, the day
after Yardan was released everyone
thought his sister Carmel would follow
the whole day I kept my self expecting
Carmel, I was almost
sure she's the
one, oh dear I'm
sorry, I'm sorry, the ceasefire deal
unraveled no more hostages have come out
since the family war room is still
operating now focused on Carmel and now
you're part of the war room that's right
so why did you decide to do the
interview? my sister-in-law camel and a
bunch of other hostages are still in
Gaza and it's wrong and we have to stop
it and if we can't do anything to help that we will
you see this a mother still waiting
for her daughter to return is there any
fear that time is running out yes at 60
minutes overtime.com she's young
bottom of page