Former Pittsburgh man reunites with nephews held hostage by Hamas for over 50 days

It took Ziv Gome four hours to race from Israel’s Eilat to Tel Aviv — roughly the distance from Pittsburgh to Harrisburg — to reunite with his two young nephews, who were released late Monday after being held hostage by Hamas militants for more than 50 days.

The trek across the sprawling Negev desert bred complicated feelings for Gome, a former Pittsburgher who frantically called family and friends on his cellphone as he drove up Israel’s Route 40.

“When they’re finally released, you’re happy for that. But you’re also painfully aware that it’s not over until everybody is back,” said Gome, 49, who previously called Squirrel Hill home and today lives near Be’er Sheva, the Negev’s largest city. “I would expect that I’d be joyous, jumping up and down, (but) it’s with mixed feelings because there are so many of us, I would say, that are still there.”

Gome’s nephews — Yagil, 12, and Or Yaakov, 16 — were released this week under a temporary cease-fire deal brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar between Hamas and Israel. The boys’ father, Yair Yaakov, 59, and his girlfriend, Meirav Tal, 54, still are being held hostage in Gaza.

Another group of Israeli hostages freed Tuesday from Gaza — nine women and a 17-year-old — was being flown to Israeli hospitals, the Israeli military said. About 30 Palestinian prisoners were expected to be released Tuesday.

Tuesday’s hostage release brought to 60 the number of Israelis freed under the terms of the cease-fire, the Associated Press reported. An additional 21 hostages of various nationalities have been released in separate negotiations since the cease-fire began Friday. So far, in exchange, 150 Palestinians have been released from Israeli prisons.

The brothers were flown via helicopter late Monday from the Israeli side of the Gaza border to Tel Aviv to be evaluated at a hospital, their uncle said. They appeared to be healthy, though thin, and were not ready to talk about their experiences in Palestinian territory, he said.

“We’re giving them the peace and quiet they need right now,” Gome said. “As for their mental situation, we just don’t know. It’s going to take time. But they’re here.”

“If anything, this proves there’s hope,” he added. “We don’t know how they’re going to recover, but there’s hope. And there’s something to fight for.”

Yagil and Or had been sleeping in their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, a 400-resident agricultural community a mile off the Gaza border, when Hamas militants attacked at 6:30 a.m. Oct. 7, killing 1,200 civilians, taking 240 hostages and injuring thousands more.

Trapped in a mamad, a kind of bunker or safe room, the two brothers phoned their mother, Renana Gome, who told Israeli media the boys were whispering and “scared to death.” Or struggled to hold the mamad’s door shut, but the militants forced their way in.

Before the line went silent, Gome heard her younger son, Yagil, shout, “Don’t take me, I’m too young!”

The two boys, whose story Renana Gome narrated in an online video created by “Waltz with Bashir” animator Yoni Goodman, were among roughly 80 people abducted from the Israeli kibbutz, Ziv Gome said. Yagil also appeared in a propaganda video posted online Nov. 9 by the terrorist group Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

A photo of Renana Gome with her two sons, hugging each other in front of an Israeli flag, has made the rounds on social media. “Home” was the only word she posted with the photo, along with a heart emoji.

More than 20 Kibbutz Nir Oz residents have been confirmed dead and dozens remain missing, Israeli media reported. Some of the missing are babies; the oldest is 86.

Terrorists burned half of the kibbutz’s homes beyond recognition and looted the rest, said Ziv Gome, who spoke with TribLIVE as he cooked a late dinner at 9 p.m. local time Tuesday.

Hamas stole or set fire to cars and farming equipment in the village, he said. They burned the village’s dining hall and its once-bustling grocery store to the ground.

Israel officials estimate it will take two years to rebuild Kibbutz Nir Oz, the Israeli news site Haaretz reported Oct. 26.

Gome grew up in Kibbutz Nir Oz and still considers it home. His mother is buried there. Before the Oct. 7 attacks, nearly a dozen of his immediate family members lived there.

A decade ago, Gome and his family moved to Pittsburgh, settling near the Jewish Community Center of Pittsburgh in Squirrel Hill. From 2007-09, Gome worked for an Israel-based company that conducted business with UPMC. The oldest of his three kids, now 16 to 21, attended Community Day School on Squirrel Hill’s Forward Avenue.

Gome said he’s been keeping tabs on how the Middle Eastern conflict is playing out in the United States — and, specifically, in Pittsburgh.

“I want them to know we feel their support,” Gome said.

He also acknowledged that the attacks and the military campaign that followed have led to some hateful acts.

“I know people all over this world, Jews and others, are not feeling safe anymore,” Gome said. “This has gone beyond Israel and Hamas.”

Gome said his family plans to advocate for the release of the boys’ father. But, they also have some planning to do. In a few days, Yagil, the younger brother, plans to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah, a Jewish rite of passage into adulthood.