The Iron Lions

"I begged them to come rescue my parents from seven to nine in the morning," she recalls watching her interview on News 12 with Danny Kushmaro. "I'm in need of help," she whispers in those moments. "How old are you Ella?" asks Kushmaro. In front of her, he admits: "I thought you were 12 or something. I asked where you were, I didn't know what to ask you." "I saw a picture on Telegram that he was in Gaza," she whispers that damn morning. "Apparently, my mother was with him and my grandmother heard about it, so she went to them and he tried to protect them, so they took him to Gaza. That's my father in the picture."She recreates the unfolding of events from a bench on the kibbutz. "I already know that we woke up to loud explosions in bunches. My friend told me that terrorists broke into the kibbutz on motorcycles. I said, 'That can't happen here.' ".At 7:20 Ella's father wrote to her - "They're here. I hear gunshots." Ella is corresponding with her father, who is hiding in the shelter throughout the day. She finds out that his door was broken, he writes that houses are being burned. "They are at our house now, they are coming. There are many terrorists inside the house, in the bathroom." In his last message he writes: "They are here." Her mother and Ella also corresponded in the process. "Very scary, how are you?" she asks. "We're fine for now, don't move," her mother replied.I was helpless," recalls Ella. "I was unarmed, and my spouse wouldn't let me leave the shelter." "He saved my life." When she saw the picture of her father, she decided to call News 12, in a call that made it clear to everyone what was happening: terrorists were kidnapping and killing people inside the kibbutzim." The call was at 11:00, the army arrived at 3:00 PM. I begged them to save my parents and no one did."She was not rescued until after 01:00 at night by rescuers. "When I went outside, I saw burned cars, dead bodies. As we fled, we heard shots and explosions." "How is my mother sitting handcuffed in the dark? She needs a lot of medicine, so I sent a list to the Red Cross. Without medicine, she won't survive for long." When she looks at the photo of her kidnapped father, she says, "I saw on his face that he would survive," she tries to remain optimistic, "I know he will never leave me alone. I am strong, I am here, and we are waiting for them."In Kibbutz Be'eri, more than 100 people were murdered, and dozens were kidnapped. "This is my extended family," she says, "I can't comprehend it." She doesn't know if she will ever return to the kibbutz, but even if she does, she says, "We'll go down the sidewalk and we won't see the familiar faces, and we'll go into the dining room and it won't be full. There is no way I can walk along the same trail I went with the bodies and burned cars.In the evening, Ella sent Kushmaro a message with an important request: "If you happen to come to Be'eri, could you look for my parents' house?" "I need you to bring an object containing their DNA, please." As she requested, the team went to Be'eri to find some artifacts. The IDF gave only a few minutes to complete the task, so it was done quickly. The News 12 team found the house completely destroyed. "I took toothbrushes and a razor," he told Ella in a phone call. An IDF officer collected the things that came from Be'eri. In the meantime, Ella's partner was drafted to the military reserve.Her aunt Ayelet, her husband and the children were rescued safely - also the grandmother. The parents, Ohad and Raz, are still missing, except for a photo of the father from Gaza - and a hope that they will return home.