‘Usually, when people say nine months, the connotation is very happy. It’s a symbol of life, of being born. I am just shocked that we even reached this mark,’ says Canadian citizen Yasmine Magal, whose cousin Omer Neutra was abducted on October 7

Ari David Blaff | National Post | July 7, 2024

Hundreds of Jewish community members and supporters held a rally in downtown Toronto on Sunday afternoon to commemorate the nine months Israeli hostages have been held in captivity by Hamas.  

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They were to be joined by several organizations demonstrating outside Roy Thomson Hall, including the United Jewish Appeal (UJA) Federation of Greater Toronto, Stand with Us Canada and the Canadian Antisemitism Education Foundation (CAEF).

“Today, we officially launch OneGlobalVoice, a Toronto-based collective that strives to make our one global voice heard everywhere, advocating for those who cannot speak for themselves,” Avi Attali, the president of the group, told the National Post in a statement.

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“We present ‘Nine Months in Hamas Hell’ to raise awareness and foster empathy for the ongoing plight of hostages still held by Hamas. By bringing several hostage families to Canada, we hope to foster support and remind the world of the urgent need for their release from the terrorist organization that is Hamas,” Attali added.

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Family members of hostages taken by the Palestinian terror group were also present at the rally, including Canadian citizen Yasmine Magal, whose cousin Omer Neutra was abducted on October 7.

“Usually, when people say nine months, the connotation is very happy. It’s a symbol of life, of being born. I am just shocked that we even reached this mark,” Magal said. “I’m shocked that it’s been nine months since we’ve heard from Omer. It became such a sad symbol.”

Magal shared with the Post that her family has not heard from Neutra since the terror attacks and are unaware of his condition or even if he has seen sunlight in the intervening time.

“This is not just my family’s issue or not just Israel’s issue; this should be a world issue. Everyone should take action,” Magal said.  

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“Canadians need to understand that the Hamas terror organization does not differentiate between nationalities. They do not care that I am Canadian. They do not care that Omer is American; that he is a U.S. citizen. They kidnapped him, and they treat him just the same as the other hostages, which is s—, pardon my language.”

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Magal fondly remembers hanging out with Neutra and looks forward to the day when they can embrace again.

“Just every time that we see each other, he always yells, ‘Hey, cuz!’ and smiles this big smile of his and gives me this biggest hug that suffocates me — but in the best way. All I want is to hear him say, ‘Hey, cuz,’ again.”

Karina Arayev’s sister, Sasha, shared Magal’s disbelief at how long it has been and held out hope that Israel could reach an agreement with Hamas to secure the return of her loved one soon.

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“We need to understand that we are talking about nine months,” Arayev told the Post. “(All) I can think about is that my sister Karina, that she is only 19 years old. Nine months our mother (has gone) without hearing her voice, seeing her, getting a hug from her.

“I can’t believe we reached this jarring date. People must understand that the October 7 attacks happened to us, but it can happen anywhere to anyone,” she said.

“We know about the sexual assaults that Hamas did on October 7, and we are really afraid that they are doing it to (women) in captivity. This is an urgent plea to release all the women and all the hostages,” Arayev, whose sister is one of over a dozen women still held in captivity by Hamas, told the Post. 

Read the full article here.