Ayelet Levy Shachar, mother of Naama Levy, who was abducted by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attacks, attends a demonstration demanding the hostages' immediate release, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Nov. 4, 2023.EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/Reuters
Ayelet Levy Shachar’s daughter, Naama Levy, is currently being held hostage in Gaza.
It has been more than 100 days since my baby girl was brutally kidnapped by Hamas. One hundred days and nights of anguish, pain and a never-ending nightmare that I cannot awake from. One hundred days of not knowing if my beloved Naama is eating. Where she is sleeping. Those 100 days have brought with them cold winter nights. Does she have something to keep her warm? Is she alone? Have her injuries been treated? One hundred days that are an eternity in the longing for my daughter to be back with me.
On Oct. 7, when my sweet Naama was brutally abducted, she no longer was solely my daughter; but in those moments of sheer horror, as the world watched my Naama dragged by her beautiful, long hair out of the back of a Jeep at gunpoint, somewhere in Gaza, handcuffed, bleeding and terrified, I believe she became everyone’s daughter. She was wearing her pyjamas. Barefoot. Alone. And I as her mother was helpless in those moments of pure terror. A terror I know that was shared with me by so many across the globe.
It has been more than three months. Three unbearable months of anguish and heartbreak. I am a mother whose heart is shattered and whose nights are haunted by the absence of my beloved daughter. Our family is not complete. I have four children. I know every day and night where three of my children are. I know they are safe. But not Naama. I know nothing. It is an excruciating pain that no one should face.
But along with the debilitating pain I feel, I know I must fight for her. I must be her voice.
Naama is a girl who believes in the good of humanity. I too want to hold on to that belief. Even as she is living through the darkest and most horrifying reality of what people are capable of, I want to believe that humanity is still good. That people around the world will join in my cry to save my daughter; to save all of the innocent people being held by Hamas.
Naama is an optimist. She truly embodies all that is good in the world. She embodies everything that those evil enough to hold her hostage and commit such crimes do not.
Testimonies shared by the released hostages leave no more questions. There is no speculation of what Hamas is capable of. What they have done. And what they continue to do to these young girls: the torture, the abuses. It is hell on earth and no place for a young girl to be.
Not for a single second more.
Many people ask how they can help. I believe every person can make a difference. Sharing her story. Raising awareness for her plight. Leaders across the world must take action that will bring an end to this torture. My daughter is alive and she is suffering. My plea is the one of any mother: Bring my baby girl back to me.
She cannot cry out for help so I ask you all to do so on her behalf.
During this sorrowful and significant moment, do not stop fighting for Naama. In those horrifying seconds where the world witnessed my daughter’s kidnapping, she took a place in the hearts of so many. She needs our voice. They all need our voice.
One day is too many.
One hundred days is unfathomable.
Bring her home now.