There’s a meme that made its way around the Jewish world social media this week ahead of Passover that shows a blindfolded man with his hands bound by rope.
The text reads: “In every generation, a person must see themselves as if they came out of Egypt. This year, we must see ourselves as if we were kidnapped in Gaza – because our people are. This isn’t just memory. It’s now. And freedom isn’t a story we tell. It’s a demand we make.”
As Israelis and Jews around the world sit down for their Seders on Saturday night to retell the remarkable exodus from Egypt, there are 24 living hostages being held in captivity by Hamas in Gaza, along with another 35 hostages killed since October 7, 2023, whose bodies have not been returned for burial.
It’s unfathomable that after 552 days since the October 7 Hamas massacre in the South, there are still hostages being held in unspeakable conditions in the dungeons of Gaza.
A report issued this week by Prof. Hagai Levine, chairman of the Israeli Association of Public Health Physicians and a leading member of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, concludes that the remaining living hostages are “in grave danger of dying at any time.”
Bring them home
At least eight of the 24 living Gaza hostages have significant injuries, and five suffer from chronic illnesses or acute allergic reactions, according to the report, which is based on first-hand testimony by released hostages.
Alon Ohel, 24, is said to have been seriously wounded by shrapnel in his right eye and can only see shadows. Ohel also suffered from shrapnel injuries to his hands, shoulder, and neck. He is being held in chains under extreme isolation, without daylight, and with severe food shortages.
Yosef-Haim Ohana, 24, suffers from severe gastrointestinal sensitivity caused mainly by spoiled food and poor sanitary conditions in captivity. He frequently suffers from vomiting and severe diarrhea, sometimes to the point of losing consciousness.
Matan Angrest, 21, was shown in a February 2025 Hamas video with suspected permanent damage to his right hand, facial asymmetry, and a broken nose, apparently as a result of torture. Released hostages said Angrest is being held in small cells resembling cages with bars and that he undergoes regular interrogations involving torture.
Rom Braslavski, 21, has suffered from asthma since childhood and from a severe allergy that can cause skin rashes, itchy eyes, sneezing, and difficulty breathing. He also reportedly suffers from severe scoliosis and chronic back pain and wears glasses, which are not in his possession.
Time and time again, after successful deals brought about the release of hostages at a painful price of the release of hundreds of convicted terrorists, the hearts of Hamas have been hardened, like Pharaoh in Egypt.
This Passover, the second one that the 24 living hostages have spent in their tortured captivity, it’s incumbent on each one of us to remember their plight at our Seders.
Whether through reciting special passages or prayers, arranging an extra table setting that’s left empty, or filling a cup alongside Elijah’s for a particular hostage, gestures have symbolism. They can be powerful reminders that, like the meme states, this year, we must see ourselves not only as if we were once slaves in Egypt but are still kidnapped and held in Gaza.
It’s human nature to adapt to certain situations, no matter how difficult, and normalize them. The Jews in slavery in Egypt probably had to do that to survive and get through each day.
That’s why we must remember, as we sit down to our Seders on Saturday night, and for every day after that, that we cannot normalize the hostages remaining in their bondage. It can never be normal that there are human beings held in cruel captivity because they are Jewish and Israeli – not in ancient Egypt and not in modern-day Gaza.
This Passover, we need to make clear – to Hamas, to our leaders, and to the rest of the world – that collectively declaration of “Next year in Jerusalem” means that long before next Passover, the 24 living hostages will be home with their families and the 35 slain hostages will returned to their families for proper burial, mourning and closure.
Don’t forget them. Especially not at the Seder.