REVEALED: Omer Shem Tov heard soldiers above the tunnel he was held in, as captors threatened his life

Shelly Shem Tov, mother of Omer Shem Tov—a 22-year-old survivor of 482 days in Hamas captivity—shared a raw, emotional account of her son’s ordeal in an interview Wednesday with Esti Perez Ben-Ami on Kan Reshet Bet’s “Midday” program.

“Omer’s okay, trying to reintegrate and catch up,” Shelly began, her voice steady but tinged with relief. “I sleep well now. Every morning, I’d walk into his room, see an empty bed, and whisper, ‘I know you’re strong.’ Today, I slip in quietly—just as I dreamed—watch him sleep, stroke his head. He says, ‘Good morning,’ I kiss his forehead, and I thank God for this moment.” Captured on October 7, 2023, from Kibbutz Nir Oz, Omer endured over 16 months in captivity before his release in the third phase of a hostage deal.

A Life Reclaimed, Step by Step

Shelly described Omer’s fragile return to normalcy. “He puts on tefillin, goes to rehab sessions, sees friends—small groups, though; crowds are tough. It’s slow.” She’d long dreamed of asking, “What do you want for breakfast?”—a mundane question now a quiet victory. Yet the scars linger. “Day-to-day was brutal,” she said of his captivity. “A cramped space, four other hostages, tension spiking when the army neared. Everything got taut.”

The most harrowing revelation came from Omer’s own words. “He heard tanks above, soldiers’ voices,” Shelly recounted. “His captors drew weapons, pressed them to his head, and said, ‘If the IDF comes, we shoot you first.’” In those moments, Omer told himself, “I have no control—just pray.” The psychological warfare cut deep. With a TV tuned to Al Jazeera, he saw protests on Tel Aviv’s Begin Road—not the hostage rallies his family joined. “They taunted him: ‘Where’s your mom? Doesn’t she care?’ It pinched his heart,” Shelly said, her voice catching.

Faith in the Dark

Captivity reshaped Omer’s spirituality. “He always believed in God, talked to Him, but not like this,” Shelly noted. “Many hostages felt a divine presence.” After Itai Regev’s release in November 2023, Omer’s conditions worsened—40 meters underground, asthma attacks, vomiting, darkness for hours. Food was a single biscuit daily, rationed into tiny bites. “He was in despair, but never wanted to die—a spark stayed alive,” she said, tears welling as she and her husband process his stories.

A Voice for the Captive

Omer’s resolve extends beyond survival. Invited to meet President Donald Trump at the White House while still hospitalized, he didn’t hesitate. “I’d go to the world’s end to help my brothers return,” he told Shelly. The half-hour meeting, weeks after Trump’s January 20, 2025, inauguration, left an impression. “Trump listened, wanted every detail of what they endured,” she said. “Omer felt he’s committed to bringing them all back—significant after so much delay.” Yet Omer fears for the 14 still held. “He says they might not come home—killed by captors or, tragically, our own forces,” Shelly relayed, echoing his sober view of renewed fighting.

A Digital Legacy

The interview coincides with Kan 11’s launch of “Here 7.10.360,” a digital museum documenting and commemorating October 7. Omer’s story—his abduction among 117 from Nir Oz, where 14 remain captive—joins a growing archive at Kan’s site, preserving voices like his amid Israel’s ongoing war. For Shelly, sharing isn’t easy. “We hear him and cry,” she admitted.