Later that day, Hamas released footage on social media showing Levy in the Gaza Strip, hands tied behind her back, as armed militants dragged her from the trunk of a Jeep and forced her inside the vehicle. One of the first viral videos of the Israel–Hamas war,[3] the footage showed Levy with multiple visible injuries and a large bloodstain on the seat of her gray sweatpants, which gave rise to widespread speculation that she had been sexually abused.[4] Images from the footage have come to symbolize sexual and gender based violence against Israeli women during the attacks.
On 22 May 2024, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum released footage compiled from Hamas militants' bodycams, showing Levy and other female soldiers being held captive at the surveillance base on the morning of 7 October. The families approved the release of the footage partly to pressure the Israeli government to resume hostage negotiations with Hamas.
On 25 January 2025, Levy and three other female soldiers, who had served and been abducted with her, were released as part of the 2025 Gaza war ceasefire, after spending 477 days in captivity.[5]
Biography
Born in Israel on 22 June 2004, Levy was raised in India where she attended an American school.[6] She has three siblings.[7] Her mother, Ayelet Levy Shachar, is a doctor with the Israeli women's national football team. Levy is a triathlete and an alumna of Hands of Peace, which promotes peace among Israeli and Palestinian youth.[8][9] She also volunteered for organizations including the Red Cross and the UN. At the time of the 7 October attacks, she had just begun her service in the Israel Defense Forces.[10]
During the 7 October attacks, Levy was acting as an IDF observer[11] in the Nahal Oz kibbutz military base,[12] which was attacked by Hamas militants. Levy's last communication with her family was at 6:55a.m. when she texted her mother confirming she was in a safe room.[13] Further messages sent to Levy 20 to 30 minutes later went unanswered.[7][14]
Footage posted by Hamas later that day (according to Reuters), and widely circulated online, showed Levy in the Gaza Strip, barefoot, bruised, and cut, with her hands tied behind her back, and wounds on her ankles. She was filmed being taken from the trunk of a Jeep and pushed into the interior of the vehicle by armed militants while bystanders chanted "God is Great" in Arabic (Arabic: الله أكبر ).[10] Her mother, who did not see the video until at least a day after the attack, stated that she was unsure the disheveled and bloody woman in the video was her daughter. However, Levy's father confirmed the footage was of Naama Levy.[15]
On 22 May 2024, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum released around three minutes of footage from Hamas militants' bodycams on the morning of 7 October. The video shows the militants taking Levy and other female soldiers hostage at Nahal Oz. Several of the women, including Levy, are seen with bloodied faces.[18] The hostages' families approved the release of the video to show how the women were treated and to pressure the Israeli government to resume hostage negotiations.[19][20][21] In the video, Levy pleads with the militants in English, saying: "I have friends in Palestine."[21] The Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated he was "shocked" by the footage and promised to do everything possible to bring the remaining hostages home.[21]
On 16 July 2024, in a further bid to renew pressure for a hostage deal, Levy's family approved the release of a photo from the early days of her captivity, showing her with a black eye and a swollen face.[22]
Efforts to secure Levy's release
Israelis taking Naama Levy's cause
Israeli children coloring a mandala in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv to commemorate Levy's 20th birthday. According to released hostages Levy drew mandalas in captivity
A protest at Hostage Square recreating the event in which 16 IDF observers were killed and the five (including Levy) were kidnapped.
Protest march on Levy's 20th birthday that ended at Hostages Square[a]
Poster of Levy that was hung in Israel during her time as a hostage
In a December 2023 interview with the Israeli channel i24 News, her father Yoni Levy requested the assistance of international organizations. He stated that while Levy had volunteered for and worked with organizations such as the Red Cross, the UN, and women's organizations, those organizations had not intervened on behalf of Levy and other female hostages.[23] He expressed outrage at the perceived silence of Michelle Obama, who had previously campaigned for the release of the kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls, over her silence concerning the abduction of Levy and other women.[12]
On International Women's Day in 2024, her mother Ayelet Levy Shachar spoke at the Israel Hayom gala in Tel Aviv. She reminded attendees that her daughter and other female hostages were still being held in Gaza as of March 2024.[8] Levy Shachar also wrote an op-ed criticizing international organizations and women's groups for not acknowledging or condemning sexual violence committed during the 7 October attacks. Another opinion piece about Levy and her abduction and status as a hostage was written by Levy Shachar and published in February 2024.[24]
In March 2024, her brother Amit Levy shared her story during a meeting with the United Kingdom All-Party Parliamentary Group, led by MPs Stephen Crabb and Margaret Hodge, organized in partnership with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. Family members of other hostages also told their stories.[25] The hashtag "#METOOUNLESSYOURAJEW" has become associated with Jewish women who are or have been held captive and reported to have endured sexual violence due to the 7 October 2023 attacks.[26][27]
It was reported at the end of March 2024 by Levy Shachar that some hostages who were released during the November 2023 cease fire and resulting prisoner exchange that they had come into contact with Levy and while she had been wounded in the legs, she was walking and talking under her own power. Her comments came before a meeting with Netanyahu and other family members of the remaining female IDF soldiers still held by Hamas, where she expected to push for negotiations about a potential hostage deal.[28]
In April 2024, her aunt and others protested near the Knesset to bring attention to the plight of the remaining hostages including Levy, and stated that the most urgent issue was to bring the hostages home.[29]
Release
Naama Levy on the helicopter after being released, thanking the Israeli people
Naama Levy, flanked by her parents, following her release on January 25, 2025.
On 24 January 2025, Hamas announced that Levy and three other female IDF soldiers would be released the next day as part of the hostage exchange during the ceasefire. For each female soldier released by Hamas, Israel agreed to release 50 Palestinian prisoners it held, of whom 30 were serving life sentences.[30][31]
On 25 January, Levy and fellow IDF observers Liri Albag, Karina Ariev and Daniella Gilboa were handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross in Palestine Square in Gaza. The handover occurred after a ceremony in which Hamas dressed the four hostages in military fatigues and brought them on a stage. Shortly after the handover, the former hostages were transferred to the IDF by the Red Cross and reunited with their families in Israel.[32][33]
In a public social media post a few days after her release, Levy offered thanks to IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians stating that during her captivity she was able to see them fighting for her. While she had been reportedly alone for the first 50 days of captivity, she said that she was later held with other IDF observers and they had supported one another during captivity and since release.[34][35]
Following her release, it was reported that Levy and other members of her all-female IDF observer unit had documented, prior to being taken hostage, unusual practice raids and drills by Hamas taking place on the Gaza side of the border fence. Their warnings were ignored by officials within Israel.[36]
In early March 2025, Levy was part of a delegation of former hostages who travelled to Washington to meet U.S. President Donald Trump to urge him to continue efforts for the release of the remaining hostages.[37]
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