Former Israeli Captive Escaped Bombardment by Running with Hamas Fighter

sajadi Editor : Widi - Friday, 30 January 2026 - 09:16 WIB

Friday, 30 January 2026 - 09:16 WIB

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Gaza, MINA – A former Israeli captive has described narrowly escaping death during intense Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip by running alongside a Hamas fighter, saying Israeli airstrikes caused nearby buildings to collapse and nearly killed him, Palestine Chronicle reported.

Eitan Mor, an Israeli soldier captured during the events of October 7, 2023, told Israel’s Army Radio that repeated Israeli airstrikes targeted areas where he was being held, placing his life in immediate danger.

“I was sitting in an apartment with Hamas fighters when an F-16 bombed a building next to us,” Mor said. “It destroyed a multi-story building. The building we were in started collapsing on us. Everyone was screaming. It felt like an earthquake.”

Mor said that amid the chaos, one of the Hamas fighters handed him a weapon and instructed him to flee behind him.

“He gave me the gun and said, ‘Run behind me,’” Mor recalled.

Asked whether he considered shooting the fighter, Mor said survival left him no such option. “Shoot him and then what? What would I do afterward?” he said, adding that his life depended entirely on staying close to him.

Mor said Israeli bombardment continued even after he was transferred to another location.

“While I was still a captive, there was a Hamas fighter in front of me and two behind me. Suddenly, a building next to us in the street was bombed,” he said. “We were all running to save our lives.”

He described fleeing through dark streets as debris fell around them, focusing on not losing sight of the fighter ahead.

“I was running behind him, trying not to lose him,” Mor said. “At that moment, I realized the Israeli army didn’t know where I was. Intelligence had no idea.”

After his release, Mor said an Israeli intelligence officer later confirmed that assessment.

“He told me, ‘Eitan, we didn’t know anything about you,’” Mor said.

Mor did not specify the exact location or timing of the incidents inside Gaza.

Hamas has repeatedly accused Israel of killing several Israeli captives through indiscriminate aerial bombardment across the Gaza Strip.

According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, more than 71,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed and over 171,000 others injured since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October 2023.

Although a ceasefire took effect on October 10, Israel has continued military operations in the enclave, killing at least 492 Palestinians and injuring 1,356 others since the agreement, the ministry said.[]

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)