‘My heart went through the ceiling’ – the words of a Massachusetts man who was still in a state of shock on Monday night after he got word that his two young cousins had been freed in Israel.
Jason Greenberg’s relatives, Shahar Kalderon, 16, and her brother, Erez, 12, were among those who were taken by Hamas gunmen during the group’s barbaric assault on the Jewish state on October 7.
Sadly, their father, Ofer Kalderon, 53, is thought to be still be in the terror group’s clutches.
The children gained their freedom during a brief truce between Hamas and the Israeli government. They were part of a group of 11 who were released from captivity, almost all of whom were young children.
Greenberg told CBS Boston that he first learned that his cousins were free through his family’s text message group chat.
Massachusetts man Jason Greenberg said that his family were left speechless after learning that their two young cousins had been freed in Israel
Sahar Kalderon, 16, was held by Hamas for over seven weeks, and was released under the extended ceasefire deal
Erez Kalderon, 12, was released by Hamas terrorists after being captive for over seven weeks
In a separate interview with WCVB, Greenberg said he had seen a video of the Kalerdons’ mother learning her children were free.
‘She was in the middle of a mall and just broke down and started rejoicing.
‘It has really been a rollercoaster. Right now, we are riding a high and we hope to be riding more highs,’ he told Fox Boston in another piece.
Greenberg went on to say that he himself had been in Israel on October 7 along with his father but the pair were able to get a flight out of Tel-Aviv. Five of his family members were not so lucky and were taken by Hamas.
His sister, Abbey, lives in Israel.
‘It has been 51 days since 200-plus people have not seen the light of day. I don’t want people to forget that.’
Sahar and Erez Kalerdon after being released from custody
The hostages are now safely back in Israel, after spending weeks in Hamas’ custody
All 11 hostages came from the same settlement, Kibbutz Nir Oz, which lies just a mile-and-a-half away from the Gaza border and had a pre-incursion population of around 400
Two other members of his family, Carmela Dan, 80, and her granddaughter, Noya, 13, were murdered in the attack.
‘[Ofer] would readily sacrifice himself for the result that happened today. I would do the same for my children … I know inside he knows his children are safe, and he can go to sleep tonight,’ Greenberg also told Fox Boston.
Shahar and Erez were two of the three French citizens who were released on Monday.
The others were two German citizens and six Argentinian citizens. They were all taken from kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7.
But fears from recent days that Hamas would split up families have seemingly been confirmed, as many of the children released have been forced to leave their loved ones behind.
Images of Hamas handing over the 11 hostages revealed its militants stood in a parade as the civilians walked towards a Red Cross van
The Red Cross was waiting for the hostages for the fourth time in as many days
The Cunio family are still missing their father, David, after they were all taken from Nir Oz during Hamas’ incursion.
Twelve-year-old Eitan will also be missing his father, Ohad, who remains a Hamas prisoner.
Eitan’s mother, Bat Sheva, previously revealed that motorcycle-riding Hamas militants tried to kidnap her and her children from their Nir Oz home, but she managed to jump off with her two daughters.
She added that she was terrified that her Manchester City-supporting son will not be the same following his seven-week stint as a hostage.
A spokesperson for the hostages families told DailyMail.com on Monday: ‘Every single child that has been released tonight is being returned while their father is being left in Hamas captivity in Gaza. Very hard to swallow.’
The head of the kibbutz, Osnat Peri, tonight said in a statement: ‘The news this evening brings a sigh of relief to our community.’
Israeli media has reported that all 11 hostages being released tonight were all taken by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Oz
He said that he and his community are still ‘deeply concerned about our loved ones that are still held hostage’, adding that of the hostages still left in Gaza, 49 are from Nir Oz.
Three of the hostages were French, and the country’s president Emmanuel Macron tonight said in a post to X: ‘Three of our young compatriots are part of the group of hostages released today.
‘Extremely happy with this announcement.’
Images of Hamas handing over the 11 hostages revealed its militants stood in a parade as the civilians walked towards a Red Cross van, which took them back to Israeli officials.
One as-yet-unidentified hostage was seen leaving Hamas custody in a wheelchair, while several others were seen in bright pink clothes.
Egyptian media has reported that a further six Thai hostages are set to be released alongside the Israelis, though this has not yet been confirmed.
Qatar’s foreign ministry said in a post on X that 33 Palestinian civilians held in Israeli jails will be freed in exchange, as part of the temporary ceasefire deal that was today extended by two days.
The terms of the truce agreement pausing the fighting in the Gaza Strip say it can be extended beyond its initial four-day term as long as 10 hostages are released for each extra day, with three times as many Palestinians freed in return.