Together with her friends and her father, former hostage Noa Argamani, whose partner Avinatan Or is still held captive by Hamas in Gaza, celebrated her return from captivity at an event entitled “Dance with Noa”.
“I have been waiting for this moment for 246 days,” Noa said, referring to the number of days she spent in captivity before being rescued. “It is not ideal to have this party now, with the war in the background, with our soldiers on the battlefield and with 109 hostages still in Gaza, including my partner, whom I miss terribly. But despite all this, I am happy to celebrate life with all of you.”
3 View gallery
Noa Argamani celebrates with her father during the party
“We have to appreciate every moment we have here every day,” she added as her friends cheered her on. “We have waited so long, we love you, Noa, you are incredible!” She wore a yellow swimsuit, a color associated with the campaign to free the hostages.
Noa Argamani celebrates release from Hamas captivity
Her father Yaakov also spoke at the ceremony: “We waited 246 days for Noa. I say ‘we’ because the whole family waited, and unfortunately Liora waited the longest. But she saw her and felt her, and God granted our wish. I have to be honest, I didn’t know Noa until October 7, the day she was kidnapped. It is thanks to you, her wonderful friends, that I was able to really get to know her.”
Noa recently returned from a trip to Japan, where she met senior diplomats from Israel and the G7 countries and recounted her harrowing experiences in captivity. “Every night I went to sleep thinking that this could be the last night of my life,” said Argamani. She described the horrific conditions she endured, her abduction on October 7, the bombings in Gaza and the daring rescue mission. “I lost a lot of weight. We drank less than half a liter of water a day and there were days when we were not allowed to drink anything at all,” she told reporters in Tokyo. She also revealed that she was only allowed to shower twice a month.
Despite the hardships and being sent between numerous locations, including tunnels, Argamani found ways to cope: “I practiced mindfulness and remembered happier moments, like diving – things I used to enjoy doing. That really helped me escape mentally.” However, she admitted: “It’s really hard to keep doing that all the time. There are nights and days when you keep hearing the bombs and you think it’s going to be the last day.”
Argamani stressed that the remaining hostages, including her partner Avinatan Or, urgently need to be freed. “Avinatan, my friend, is still there and we need to bring them back before it is too late. We don’t want to lose more people than we have already lost,” she said. She also sent her partner a message: “I just want to tell him to stay safe. I am waiting for him at home and will do everything I can to bring him back to his family – and to me.”
