Avi Ohana, the father of Yosef Haim Ohana, who was released from Hamas captivity, shared his emotions with the Moreshet channel, following his son’s return and spoke about the spiritual strength that sustained the family throughout the past two years.
“I am walking on cloud nine, in the sky,” he said emotionally. “For two years I could not sleep because of the pain, and now I cannot sleep because of the joy. This miracle is something beyond nature. As the days go by, I realize how much greater it is. The verse from Psalms is being fulfilled: ‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.’”
According to Ohana, after the signing of the latest deal, his son was transferred - together with about seven other hostages - to a deep, narrow pit, where they were held under extremely harsh conditions.
“They couldn’t sit, only stand and lean against the wall. There was no oxygen. A person could die just from that alone, God forbid. It was literally, ‘And Joseph was brought down to Egypt’ - Joseph in the pit,” he said.
“The miracle was tremendous,” he added. “He told me many things we didn’t know. After the deal was signed, we thought they were probably being taken out of the tunnels and organized for release. I asked him, ‘Was it really like that?’ He said, ‘Dad, after the deal was signed, they put me with six other guys and took us down the stairs - down, down, down. We thought we were going to another tunnel.’ But they ended up in a pit so small that seven men could barely stand, unable to sit, leaning against the wall. The lack of oxygen alone could have killed them.”
Ohana emphasized that what kept his son alive was faith and the thought of family. “Only one thing - family. The thought of dad, mom, brothers, friends. That’s what gave him strength.”
He also described one particularly moving moment during Yosef Haim’s captivity: “One day, Hamas gave them a small radio to listen to the Quran, and he managed to pick up the IDF Radio frequency. Suddenly, he heard me speaking. He said to himself, ‘My father is alive, he is waiting for me,’ and it gave him new life.”
Reflecting on his own struggle during the long period, Ohana said: “I didn’t see a psychologist or psychiatrist. My psychologist was Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. When it was hard, I went to the Western Wall, to the graves of the righteous, and cried out to God from the depths of my heart.”
He recalled that on October 7, when he learned his son had been taken captive, he told himself: “Master of the Universe, thank God he is alive and not killed. I saw videos where they had already pointed a weapon at him, but at the last moment they changed their decision and took him alive. That is a gift from God.”
Ohana added that his son’s release is not only a personal miracle but a national one. “It is a miracle for the entire Jewish people. Every Jew who prayed, every tear that was shed - all are part of this salvation. We saw the hand of God.”
In conclusion, he reflected: “What have I learned? Even when it seems that everything is lost - nothing is lost. The Holy One, blessed be He, does not forget anyone. If Joseph lived and returned from the pit, the people of Israel will also return. We will all be redeemed with the help of God.”