French Hamas hostages: for the families of Orion, Ofer and Ohad, pain and hope are intertwined

The wait is becoming more unbearable for their families every day. After the Israeli army confirmed the death of 28-year-old Elia Toledano, three French hostages remain in the hands of Hamas. Like about 130 others, they showed no signs of life after the Hamas attacks on October 7.

The announcement of the death of Elia Toledano Marie-Pascal Radu causes “great sadness” but also “great concern” for her son Orion Hernandez Radu. A 32-year-old French-Mexican father of an almost two-year-old child, he was kidnapped at the Nova Tribe festival on October 7. He went there in the company of his German-Israeli friend Shani Luka, who was kidnapped like him and found dead on October 30.

“I’m on the edge right now,” admits Marie-Pascal, contacted on Friday afternoon. I was preparing during the break for the fact that he wouldn’t come out, but now it’s hard. “I have moments of tears, but deep inside me there is still a lot of hope for Orion. We hope that things will go as well as possible there. He’s a leader in life, I hope he tries to lead something or help others,” she suggests, not knowing what that really is.

The fathers of the three released minors have not yet been found.

Like Orion, the other two fathers have been missing since October 7th. Ofer Calderon, 53, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz along with his two children Erez (12 years old) and Sahar (16 years old). Minors, they were released on November 27 after 52 days of captivity and were able to reunite with their mother Hadas.

But the struggle continues to bring Ofer home. “Every time we hear that the army has found a new body, it scares us even more. (…) Anyone can die in Gaza at any second,” he testified France 2 Sharon Calderon, Ofer’s sister and the children’s aunt. This Friday she took part in a large demonstration in Tel Aviv, and friends of Orion Hernandez Radu are also expected to raise her portrait during a rally this Saturday in the Israeli capital.

The uncertainty is equally great for the family of 49-year-old Ohad Yahalomi, a resident of the same kibbutz Nir Oz. A carpenter by profession, he is the father of young Eitan (12 years old), also released on November 27. His relatives, contacted by Le Parisien, were not yet willing to talk.