NYC man's brother-in-law held hostage by Hamas: 'Piecing together the broken pieces'
Moshe Lavi says his family will never be able to mend the "broken pieces" after his brother-in-law Omri Miran was kidnapped from his kibbutz by Hamas during the terror group's Oct. 7 attack on civilians in southern Israel.
Last week, Lavi joined a delegation in Washington, D.C., comprised of the families of individuals taken hostage by Hamas, which killed over 1,200 people and kidnapped 240 on Oct. 7. Hamas abducted Miran from Kibbutz Nahal Oz, and he is currently still a hostage.
In an interview with The Christian Post, Lavi said this was the third time participating in a delegation like this one to advocate for the release of Hamas hostages.
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The families met with foreign diplomats and politicians from both sides of the aisle and officials from the U.S. State Department. Lavi met with the likes of Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J..
The concern the group of families had is the current pace for securing the hostages' release is not appropriate to the current crisis, Lavi said.
"Which is why we're here," he said, "to ensure that the relevant stakeholders understand that this needs to be resolved yesterday, not today," he added. "And then, use those conversations to see how pressure can be leveraged with relevant stakeholders."
Lavi clarified that the "relevant stakeholders" he mentioned included Qatar, Egypt, the United States, the Israeli government and the European Union. He understands the issue is "complex," considering that the opposition, being a terror organization, makes finding a solution to the crisis more challenging.
Lavi said his 46-year-old brother-in-law, Miran, is married to his sister, and the couple has two daughters. He described Miran as a spiritual man connected to nature. In addition to reading, Miran is a fan of sports.
While Lavi lives in New York, he told CP that his sister and nieces live in Israel. He noted that his work has changed as of late, as he had always worked in management consulting. However, since the abduction of his brother-in-law, Lavi has been fighting for Miran's release.
One of the last times Lavi remembers speaking to his brother-in-law was in a video conversation one week before Oct. 7. Lavi had just moved to New York in September and was showing his sister and brother-in-law his new place. He recalled that they were happy for him.
On Oct. 7, Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007, carried out its surprise attack in southern Israel. Most of the dead were civilians. With over 240 hostages taken, Israel launched an offensive in Gaza, seeking to eradicate Hamas and secure the hostages.
On the day of the attack, Lavi said that the entire family was messaging each other in a group chat. One of the last photos he received from his sister was of his nieces and the family dog before losing contact with her for hours.
During the interview with CP, Lavi revealed that it was his sister's birthday, but the tragedy that had befallen their family made it impossible to celebrate.
"We are very close to each other," Lavi said about how the family has been coping in the aftermath of the attack. "But there are obviously a lot of issues we have to deal with: displacement, the trauma from the attacks, the piecing together of the broken pieces. Although, we won't be able to do it completely until Omri returns."
At the time of the interview, Lavi said that the family received confirmation through hostages who were released that Miran is still alive. But that was at least five weeks ago, and the family has not heard about Miran's condition since then.
"Every second in captivity is a charity," Lavi stated.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
