For Maya Desiatnik, the morning of October 7, 2023, will forever be etched in her memory as the day her world changed forever. On that fateful morning, Hamas, the terrorist organization ruling Gaza, launched an unprecedented and brutal attack on Israel. Among their targets was the Nahal Oz military base near the Gaza border, where Maya was stationed as a lookout soldier.
“I will never forget what I saw through the surveillance cameras,” Maya recalls, her voice heavy with emotion. “The terrorists breached the border effortlessly, storming into our base. Chaos erupted as they advanced, leaving destruction in their wake.”
Trapped in the command center with her fellow lookout soldiers, Maya endured hours of terror as gunfire and explosions echoed around them. When the terrorists set the command center on fire, Maya narrowly escaped, but her fellow soldiers and friends were not as fortunate.
“I was the only one who survived,” she says, her voice breaking. “I lost my closest friends that day. The memories of them and their bravery are with me always.”
In the aftermath of the attack, Maya faced a new and more complicated battle. Her physical injuries from smoke inhalation eventually healed, but the emotional scars run far deeper. Plagued by PTSD, nightmares, and overwhelming survivor’s guilt, Maya has struggled to find her footing.
During her recovery, the fact that not all her friends had perished that day, and instead were taken captive by Hamas, gave her a sliver of hope. The knowledge that Daniella, Liri, Naama and Karina, had reportedly been taken captive by Hamas became both a source of strength and a tormenting uncertainty.
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Maya and some of her friends at Nahal Oz base before October 7
(Photo: Courtesy Belev Echad)
Months passed, Maya traveled to New York with a delegation from the organization Belev Echad - an international nonprofit dedicated to helping injured soldiers. There Maya was confronted with heart-wrenching images of her friends in captivity.
“I didn’t want to see them,” she recalls. “But when I did, I recognized Daniella immediately because of the tattoo on her arm. It was a moment of both hope and pain, knowing they were alive but trapped in such unimaginable circumstances.”
Just last week, Maya’s world shifted once more. While on another advocacy mission with Belev Echad in Cleveland, Ohio, she received the news she had prayed for: her friends had been released and were on their way home to Israel.
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“I felt a tidal wave of emotions – relief, joy, anger, everything at once,” she says. “Relief that they were alive, joy that they were safe, but also anger at Hamas for dragging this out, for separating us, for trying to claim some twisted victory in the end.”
Maya’s reaction was raw and immediate. “I broke down and cried,” she admits. “For the first time, I cried tears of happiness. It felt like a weight had been lifted. For so long, my life revolved around ensuring their stories weren’t forgotten, and now, they are free. They are home.”
This moment of closure marked a profound turning point for Maya. For over a year, she has lived with the singular purpose of advocating for her friends’ freedom, unable to imagine a future beyond her grief.
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Maya has faced opposition at the college campuses where she has spoken about her experiences on October 7 and after
“Now, I finally feel like I can breathe,” she says. “For the first time, I’m allowing myself to think about the future – studying, traveling, and rebuilding the life I put on hold.”
She currently is traveling to college campuses across the United States under the auspices of Belev Echad, sharing her story, and ensuring the world hears the truth about Israel and the sacrifices made by its people.
Through her lectures, Maya is not just educating audiences but also inspiring them. Her story is one of survival, resilience and the unbreakable bond between friends. “Their release is not just a moment of joy; it’s a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the strength we find in each other,” she says.