= Every day, every morning and every evening, Orli Gilboa talks to her daughter, Daniela Gilboa, the observer who was kidnapped from her bed at the base in Nahal Oz on the seventh of October. “In the middle of the day I try not to be there, in order to function, but in the last few days I told her that it is close and that it will happen, to hold on a little longer, how much we love and miss her and that I hope she is together with Doron and Karina (kidnapped Doron Steinbracher and Karina Ariev who were recorded with her in the video, DBA) and don’t lose hope.”
>> How can Noa Argamani and the other abductees be shamed like that?
And do you really believe that liberation is closer than ever?
“I met Netanyahu several times. He should now do everything he can, and not just talk. The people are backing him, and at least 70 percent want a deal now, which was not the case in the first three months of the war. I want to remind him of the day when four The abductees. It is true that it involved great sadness following the fall of Arnon Zamora, but their return brought great joy to our people. We stand behind him and want to trust him, and give him all the support.”
How do you manage to function in the family all this time?
“My husband is less in the media. He is a man of faith and finds solace in faith and prayers. He tries to maintain a routine and works half a day, so that there is something to get up in the morning for. Daniela’s sister is only 15 years old. She is repressed and manages to cut herself off from friends, but I feel What’s going on with her. Sometimes she sleeps in Daniela’s bed.”
In January 2024, on the 107th day of the war, Hamas leaked a video in which Daniela directs an angry look at the camera and calls on Netanyahu and the government to act for her release and the release of all the abductees. Only today (July 9), Daniela’s family approved showing the video in its entirety. “Where were you on the seventh of October when I was kidnapped from my bed?” asks Daniela there, “Where are you now? Why should I, a soldier who gave one hundred percent of herself to the country and did such hard service in the war, feel that I was abandoned and thrown away by you? Take care of yourselves, my dear government, and do It’s your job to bring us all back home, as long as we’re alive.”
Daniela also personally addresses her family in the video, saying: “And you are my family, I miss you very, very much and love you – mother, father, Noni, Royko. Do what you can to bring me home as long as I’m alive.”
The full video reached you immediately upon its publication and you did not allow it to be published in the Israeli media, until today. Why?
“We were in a different time. It was difficult for us to watch it then. I saw it once, and not to the end. It was too painful, and we were also sure that in a moment it would be over and there was no need to stomp on it. It was psychological terrorism by Hamas. Now we decided to publish the video because The things she says there are very relevant, when there is a concrete deal on the table. The prime minister needs courage and determination to pursue the deal and make sure it comes to fruition, and not let extremists torpedo it.”
“Netanyahu needs courage and determination to pursue a deal and make sure it comes to fruition, and he will not let extremist elements derail it”
“Netanyahu should do everything he can, and not just talk.” Orly Gilboa at a demonstration for the release of the abductees and the abductees Photo: Courtesy of the photographer
“My legs will not withstand the meeting.” Daniela Gilboa and her mother Orli Photo: Social Networks, Section 27A Law
The families of the abductees also have a variety of opinions, yesterday in the Knesset a father spoke who did not want the deal.
“I know the voices. There are many opinions in the families, all the abductees are a microcosm of Israeli society. I also have two cousins in captivity, Yossi Sharabi who was murdered and his body is kept in Gaza, and Eli Sharabi. I too would like to receive them all in one piece, but I don’t I see it happening. My daughter is supposed to return in the first beat, and I don’t know if Eli is part of those released on a humanitarian basis. I understand those who are afraid, who know that their family member will not be in the first beat. I understand their pain, but their resistance I don’t really understand, you have to start from something.”
It is clear that Daniela recited in the video what Hamas ordered her to say, but were you still able to see your daughter there?
“It was the first time I had heard her since the seventh of October. Until the video I knew nothing. I immediately recognized that it was not real, Daniela is a singer and creator but she is also an actress, and she was completely in the game and did what was assigned to her, so the way of speaking surprised me. When she spoke to It was from the heart, and that was where I broke down. After the things were published, I asked for the opinion of a professional. They told me that although she seems strong and assertive, her mental condition was not good 170 days ago, and it was not caught.”
“She is a strong girl, I want to believe that she manages to keep her sanity.” Daniela Gilboa Photo: Social Networks, Section 27A Law
“All this was not caught.” Orly Gilboa Photo: Courtesy of the photographer
Except for the video, you did not receive any information regarding her or a sign of life from those who returned from captivity?
“No. According to the video, it seems that she is being held in a tunnel. Although my girl is strong and I want to believe that she maintains some kind of sanity, there is a difference between those who were in homes, saw daylight and breathed normal air, and those who are locked in tunnels.”
In your mind’s eye do you imagine your meeting with her?
“Yes. I meet her in a hospital, and then I collapse. All the passion I had, of being strong and determined, will disappear. At that moment my legs won’t be able to stand it.”
“According to the video, it appears that she is being held in a tunnel.” Daniela Gilboa Photo: Social Networks, Section 27A Law
