WATCH: A Terrorist Killed My Wife: The Heartbreaking Story of Tze'ela Gez

On a road meant to lead to new life, Tzeela Gez’s journey was cruelly ended. On Wednesday, May 14th, Tzeela, 38 weeks pregnant and on her way to deliver her fourth child, was killed in a targeted terrorist attack just outside her home near Bethlehem.

Her husband, Hananel Israel, sat beside her in the vehicle at the time of the attack, his world fracturing as he witnessed her final moments. This is the story of a woman whose light touched countless souls, a family torn apart, and a husband whose faith in Hashem remains a pillar of strength amid unimaginable grief.

What Happened to Tzeela

Tzeela was a therapist whose life’s mission was to mend broken spirits. With a master’s degree in movement therapy and advanced psychotherapy training, she ran private clinics in Jerusalem and at her home, counseled globally via Zoom, and trained thousands of therapists, coaches, and psychologists.

Her WhatsApp group of over 1,000 professionals was a hub for matching people with care, and her videos on TikTok and Facebook offered tools for healing trauma, anxiety, depression, and more. She was a mother who paused everything for her three children, aged 6, 7, and 10, giving them her full presence, and a wife who taught Hananel to cherish life’s lessons over petty disputes.

That evening, Tzeela, despite a grueling pregnancy marked by complications like symphysis pubis dysfunction and a near-fatal anemia scare at 29 weeks, decided to head to the hospital in Jerusalem for a planned procedure to induce labor.

At around 9:30 p.m., she and Hananel packed their minivan, including a baby seat for their expected son, whom they had planned to name Ravid. As they drove out of their yishuv, a green laser flickered from a nearby hill, a sinister prelude. Seconds later, a gunshot tore through the windshield, striking Tzeela in the neck, chest, and arm. Hananel, pierced by shrapnel in his hand and chest, saw her slump instantly, blood pooling as the car veered toward disaster.

In a surge of instinct, Hananel grabbed the steering wheel, pressed the brake, and stopped the vehicle. He pressed desperately on Tzeela’s wounds, blood seeping through his fingers, and called for help. Security forces and ambulances arrived within minutes, rushing Tzeela to one ambulance and Hananel to another.

At the hospital, doctors performed an emergency C-section. Tzeela was pronounced dead, with her baby in critical condition. Hananel faced the unbearable truth: his wife was gone.

The attack, traced to a terrorist from the nearby Arab village of Bruqin, was meticulously planned, involving multiple accomplices. By Shabbat (May 17th), the IDF had identified and neutralized the shooter, Nael Samara, who was preparing another attack, and apprehended his network. A chilling coincidence emerged: the lead soldier in the operation shared the name Ravid, a moment that brought Hananel to tears, seeing divine signs amid his sorrow.

Tzeela’s legacy lives on. Her corneas, donated with Hananel’s approval, restored sight to a four-year-old Jewish boy and a 40-year-old Jewish man. Her teachings continue to guide, with videos and closed classes now shared publicly, helping others navigate trauma, including, poignantly, Hananel’s brother, who used Tzeela’s breathing exercises to cope with her loss.

Hananel’s Words of Inspiration and Heartache

Hananel’s voice, raw with grief yet anchored in faith, offers a testament to resilience. Here are his words, drawn from the transcript, capturing his heartache and unyielding emunah (faith):

On the Moment of Loss: “I asked him like 10 times, ‘Are you sure, are you sure?’ And he kept saying, ‘Yes, yes.’ For some reason this had to happen. And somehow this is good, I don’t know. But I have to have emunah. I have to believe that this is for the good, and we have to be strong. And if we break, then that means they won.”

On Tzeela’s Death: “She died in my hands basically… I saw her, I buried her… There’s a lot of confusion in your brain because you don’t want to accept that this happened. It’s not normal, but you just got to accept it, move on.”

On Facing His Children: “I tell them, ‘We got shot by a terrorist… I tried to help Ima a lot, and all the people that came to help us tried to help her a lot, but unfortunately, they were not able to help her, and she’s dead.’ My 10-year-old immediately understood and was shattered… I told him, ‘You’re going to be down, and I’m going to hug you and help you, and I’m going to be down, and you’re going to hug me and help me, and we’re going to help each other through this.’”

On Tzeela’s Legacy: “She was the soul fixer… She always pushed for people to grow and learn… I’m very happy that we were zoche (privileged) to have her in our lives… She told me, ‘Live life to the fullest.’ I mean to tell her, ‘Thank you for being with me for so many years and dealing with all the things we went through.’”

On Resilience and Faith: “Hashem loves us. I don’t understand why this is good, but there’s a reason why this happened… We’re the chosen nation. That’s why they’re doing this to us, because we’re like the diamond… It’s easy to love somebody when he gives you a gift. It’s hard to love somebody when he hits you. But if he hits you and it’s your father and your king, it’s because he’s doing something good for you.”

On Moving Forward: “You’re not saying that you don’t feel the pain and sorrow… But you’re allowing them to flow through you… If you let all the range of emotions have a place, you’re going to be able to feel everything… You have to have the up and down in life.”

On Tzeela’s Message to Him: “She told me a year ago… ‘If I die, you carry on. You raise the children. You remarry. You move on with your life… Live to the fullest.’ That was her thing… I’m just going to take it day by day.” Tzeela’s words, spoken during a missile scare, guide Hananel’s path forward, a mandate to live vibrantly for their children.

Hananel’s heartache is palpable, yet his faith urges Israel’s leaders to expel threats from the land, comparing terrorism to untreated cancer. His resolve to strengthen Am Yisrael, shared through a WhatsApp group and amplified in the press, inspires a nation. Tzeela’s murder is a wound, but Hananel’s response, rooted in love, emunah, and action, is incredibly inspiring.

Source: Inspiration for the Nation podcast transcript, hosted by Yakov Langer, published May 25, 2025.