Released hostage Agam Berger shared how she was moved from hiding places once a month when in Gaza captivity, in conversation with Rabbi Yoshiyahu Pinto, Ynet revealed on Sunday.
Berger, who was kidnapped from the Nahal Oz base on October 7 by Hamas, said she was often held in houses, some of which belonged to Palestinian families.
She noted how when she was held together with fellow IDF observer Liri Albag, they would listen to the radio and sing along, after which they would be silenced.
"They tell you to be quiet because Hebrew can be heard from outside," she explained, that Hamas did not want people to know they were there and that the neighbors were not aware of their presence there.
With regard to the airstrikes, she noted, according to Ynet, "They were so scary, especially in the beginning, because you're not used to it. You feel the house moving. "
But little by little, the fear subsided a bit," she further noted.
Berger, who was released in late January, a week after fellow IDF observers Karina Ariev, Naama Levy, Daniella Gilboa, and Liri Albag, said she knew she would be released only two days prior to her actual release.
Religion in captivity
Berger also shared her experience of observing religion in captivity. She said she got into an argument with one of the terrorists after she refused to read the Quran she was given.
She stated she was brought two prayer books soldiers had left behind in Gaza. "The mayor of Gaza received items from his 'soldiers,' and they found two siddurim, a newspaper, and a book by a rabbi—I forgot his name—and they brought them to us. They didn’t know what it was. They saw that it was in Hebrew; there was an IDF signature."
She shared how she tried to keep Passover, "There were no matzot," she said, "I asked them for cornmeal and dates—whatever was available."
"Liri and I drew a Haggadah, as we remember it. A festive atmosphere. And Liri made decorations and things for the table," she recalled.
Regarding the 9th of Av, she said, "We saw it on television; they read out the Hebrew date along with the Gregorian one, and then we counted."
She said she asked the terrorists to tell her the date on which Yom Kippur would fall. The terrorists "somehow managed to find" the date, she stated, adding, "I hope that was the exact date—Now I'm not really sure if it was the actual date or not, but that's what they said."