Ohad Ben Ami was the last person to be held alongside Elkana Bohbot in captivity. Both were abducted on Oct. 7 — Ben Ami from his home in Kibbutz Be’eri, Bohbot from the Nova music festival. They met underground in Gaza’s tunnels.
After 491 days, Ben Ami was released in the second hostage deal and reunited with his wife, Raz — who had been kidnapped with him and freed in the first exchange — and their daughters, Yuli, Ela and Natalie. Bohbot remains in what his family calls “Hamas’ hell,” waiting for the day he can embrace his wife, Rivka, and their young son, Re'em.
In captivity, Ben Ami, 56, and Bohbot, 36, developed a deep bond. “We were six hostages crammed into six square meters,” Ben Ami recalled in a joint conversation with Rivka. “Naturally, everyone searched for closeness. Elkana and I were the only ones allowed to fetch food from the captors, so we spent a lot of time together. He was the closest to me. We talked as fathers, as husbands. He could almost be my son, so we spoke like father and son, too. He never stopped talking about Re'em and Rivka. Not a morning or evening went by without him mentioning them.”
Through Ben Ami, Rivka has learned what her husband has endured during 707 days in captivity. “The conditions are inhumane. We were constantly hungry, given tiny portions of food,” Ben Ami said. “Twice, Elkana collapsed after eating spoiled food. There are no medicines, no hygiene at all. It’s total darkness, and every airstrike shakes the tunnel and sends dirt falling on you. It’s unbearable, and I worry about him constantly.”
He added that Bohbot confided his fears: “He was worried whether Rivka would wait for him, that maybe she’d go back to Colombia, that she wouldn’t recognize the chaos and war in Israel. I kept reassuring him.”
Rivka asked how time passed in captivity. Ben Ami answered: “We counted minutes. We’d talk for hours, ask what time it was, and only 10 minutes had passed. We forced ourselves to stay up late so we could wake as close as possible to when food came at noon. It felt like eternity.”
Those memories, she said, gave her strength. “Ohad told me Elkana spoke about our trip to Colombia. It brought me back to family moments of joy I’d almost forgotten. For me, Ohad symbolizes hope. He is the last person who was with Elkana.”
Ben Ami has joined the campaign for Bohbot and the other hostages still in Gaza. “Physically I’m here, but mentally I’m still there,” he said. “When I eat or lie in bed, they come to mind. I can’t heal while they’re still inside. I carry terrible guilt. I’m on a mission to bring them home. I told Rivka, Elkana is always on my lips. I show his picture to everyone I meet. I’ll do anything for him, and I’m fighting for him and for all of them. If there’s no deal, 48 bodies will come back in coffins.”
Two days ago, Ben Ami and his wife, together with the brothers of another hostage, Evyatar David, met U.S. President Donald Trump. “Trump asked if military pressure could free the hostages. I said absolutely not, only a deal. I left the meeting feeling he’s serious about this, that he cares and won’t give up.”
Rivka thanked him, saying: “Nothing you’re doing is taken for granted. We have to knock on every door until one opens. With God’s help, Elkana will come home.”
Ben Ami said the hostages were shown Al Jazeera for 10 minutes once a month. “We’d see the protests in the square and say, ‘Wow, they haven’t given up on us.’ Today, when I see them, I cry with joy. I hope they see me now and know we haven’t given up.”
Two weeks ago, Re'em, now 5, began kindergarten. “I try to project confidence, but he already understands,” Rivka said. “A girl told him, ‘I see your father on posters.’ Right now, I’m both mom and dad, and Elkana is missing his childhood. I look at Re'em and wish I could freeze him so Elkana won’t miss his growing up.”
She added: “He asked for a baby sister. I told him we have to wait for Dad. He asked, ‘But how long?’ I had no answer. It’s heartbreaking. Why not bring them back already? My husband doesn’t have time. Every time a deal collapses, the captors take it out on them. How will Elkana come back? It’s a never-ending nightmare. Every week, there’s another attack, more soldiers killed. It just doesn’t end.”
Both Rivka and Ben Ami dream of the day Bohbot comes home. “We’re planning a double date with the families at Mahane Yehuda or Carmel Market,” Ben Ami said. “I love him and miss him so much. I’m waiting for him to come out so we can do things in Jerusalem — after he’s with Re'em and Rivka , of course.”
When asked if Rivka matches Bohbot’s descriptions from captivity, he smiled: “Even more than I imagined. The most beautiful, the strongest, the best mother.” Rivka added, “When Elkana comes back, he’ll see I started training. I’ve become stronger.”
Ben Ami repeated the message he now carries everywhere: “There’s no time. If we want those still alive to come back alive, we need a deal now. Otherwise, it will be too late.”
Rivka concluded, “Every day that passes is an eternity. But I believe Elkana will return.”