A mother who is both American and Israeli recounted her frightening ordeal of being seized by Hamas fighters along with her daughter and being kept as captives for two weeks before being set free last year.
Judith Raanan and her daughter, Natalie Raanan, who is now 18 years old, were the initial hostages released by Hamas following their incursion into southern Israel on Oct. 7, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people and the abduction of around 200 more. In her first interview since her release in October, Raanan recounts the events of being seized and released by Hamas fighters on NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports.”
Raanan mentioned that she and her daughter were sleeping in a guest house in the kibbutz near the Gaza border when the attacks by Hamas began.
“Yes, we heard gunfire. We did not hear any planes above us. We only heard shots from far away. And then until I until I heard some Arabic and I understood that I have two minutes to explain to my daughter what is about to happen. And, and I did,” Raanan informed host Elizabeth Vargas.
She informed her daughter to remain calm and cautioned her about armed militants barging into their residence. She stated that she and Natalie were still in their nightwear when the militants forced their way in, carrying “big weapons” and a “big bomb.”
“My girl was afraid. She said, ‘Mom, I’m afraid to be raped.’ I said nobody’s going to do nothing to you,” Raanan said.
She likened the experience to a game of “Russian roulette,” stating that “You don’t know if you’re gonna be dead or alive.” While in captivity, she revealed that she sang Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” to her daughter to reassure her.
“The song by Louis Armstrong. It’s a wonderful world…And she goes like, Mom, I don’t think that this is appropriate. This is not so wonderful right now. And I said this is appropriate. You are Jewish Queen; you are my princess,” she said.
When asked how she maintained composure during the ordeal with her daughter, she answered that they prayed.
“All the time. She’s extremely beautiful too. And it’s not just that it doesn’t matter. It just that you know we’re vulnerable. And we pray, we pray, we talk to Hashem,” Raanan said.
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