Malki Shem Tov, the father of captivity survivor Omer Shem Tov, spoke to Arutz Sheva-Israel National News about what his son went through and how his family coped during the difficult time.
Shem Tov starts the interview by discussing his son's trip to Washington on Tuesday to meet with US President Donald Trump. He recounts how they were contacted two days ago with an offer for Omer to join the meeting between Trump, Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, and several other survivors. Malki hesitated at first since very little time had passed since Omer's release, but Omer answered that he "will do anything he can to influence the decision-makers to bring back the other hostages."
He notes that his wife had already been to the US a few times and had also met President Trump. He adds that the meeting will be especially exciting since Omer returned home and will now meet Trump, who without a doubt helped a lot with the release of hostages in this phase of the deal.
According to him, the survivors of Hamas captivity, who can speak first-hand about what happened there and explain the terrible suffering, can pass on the important message to President Trump and his cabinet. "All this, with a great hope that Trump will continue to put all his pressure on all the decision makers and whoever could hasten the return of the hostages."
Malki shares that what kept Omer and his family strong during captivity was faith and hope. He describes Omer as a hopeless optimist and says: "We never lost hope or faith, we were always positive, even at the toughest moments. Yes, there were ups and downs, but we knew that Omer was coming home. He also told us that throughout his entire time in captivity, he lived with the total knowledge that he would return home. Despite the unhuman difficulties he faced, he for a moment never lost hope and faith."
During his captivity, Omer was exposed to television and knew about the release process, including Hamas's on-stage ceremonies. "Therefore, when he went up on stage he made a 'V' sign to show his victory. Even if they forced him to kiss the head of one of his captors, his message was: 'I'm going home and you - Hamas - are staying in your hell.'"
Omer has been sharing the horrors that he endured in captivity with his family slowly. Malki recounts: "We haven't gotten to hear a lot. Omer shares slowly and the recovery and catching up process is going at his pace. Omer was alone for all 505 days except for the first 52 days. He was held in a small and crowded tunnel, in a cell in which he couldn't stand upright, with little food and salty water. From the first moment, he used his social skills, his personal charm, to survive. He has a very captivating character. From the moment he began staying with his guards, he connected to them, and that way he coped with the fact that he was totally alone."
Omer worked to maintain his Jewish identity, even in captivity. "They would recite the Kiddush [on Friday night] for five months on a bottle of grape juice that they received. These things really gave him strength. The faith, to know that he was being watched over from above, helped him survive. He said that he wanted to fast on Yom Kippur, but he didn't know the date. He listened to the radio once in a while and one day, the Israeli stations didn't play anything but the other ones did. Looking back, he understood that it was Yom Kippur, and he was a bit saddened when he understood that he missed the fast."
The Shem Tov family worked the entire time to run the fight for the hostages' release through Israeli unity. "Shelly, my wife, from the first moment, sounded the call for unity, for everyone to be together for the goal of returning the hostages, so that this nation finally comes together and that the terrible division that was before October 7th was what caused the disaster.
"This is what she believed and still believes and what drove her the entire time. We as a family worked, within the Hostages' Families Forum and in general, with a spirit of unity. This stance kept us strong during the difficult period that we went through. We see how this nation thirsts for unity. It's important that we do this and continue to stick with it, what makes us special is unity. That is the only way we could overcome the difficulties and the tragedies that befell us," he concluded.