Avichai Brodutch was reunited Sunday with his wife, Hagar, 40, and their three children, Oriyah, 4, Yuval 8, and Ofri 10, for the first time in 51 days, since they were kidnapped by the Hamas terrorist organization on October 7. The four family members were released as part of the third group of Israeli captives in the hostage release deal and were taken to Schneider Children's Hospital.
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Avichai Brodutch joined the fight against terrorists in Kfar Aza, located close to the Gaza border, and struggled to bring back his abducted family members from the Strip as soon as he realized they were abducted.
He initiated a protest outside the Kirya urban military base in Tel Aviv – where IDF officials and the Security Cabinet have held meetings throughout the war – a week after the massacre on October 7, demanding a change in policy – under the banner: "Bring back the captives before anything else."
Avichai was also the first among the families of the captives to meet with a government representative in Qatar, whose mediation eventually led to the deal. Now, for the first time in over seven weeks, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief: his wife and children have returned to Israel.