This is a story about a 17-year-old angel named Tomer. It’s a story about a boy whose house was invaded by terrorists on Saturday morning, shot his stepfather, took his step-sisters and his mother and held them hostage inside the house. The terrorists went live on Facebook and recorded every minute.
This is a story about a boy who a moment ago fell asleep and woke up to a nightmare at 6 in the morning, one boy that the terrorists forced him to go through all the neighbor’s houses in the kibbutz, knock on their doors and ask them to come out. One brave boy who sat upright without crying in front of monsters with weapons, one brave boy who went door to door and tried to convince the terrorists that there was no one in the neighbors’ houses.
One child who was torn from his mother’s arms and from the moment Kem did not see her again, one child whom the terrorists used and murdered with unimaginable cruelty in front of his mother and then murdered her as well. This is a story about Tomer, Tomer Arava who entered my heart and tore it to pieces on October 7th, this is a story about a hero who is only 17 years old and will never return. This is his last picture – a hostage in his home holding his mother’s hand.