Ditza Or in first interview since Avinatan's release: "A lot of challenges"

Ditza Or, mother of Avinatan Or who returned from Hamas captivity, gave her first interview since his return on the program "HaPatriotim." She spoke of the joy alongside the pain for the hostages who have not yet returned, of her son's resilience like the roots of a tree, of the parting from Noa Argamani, and of her prayer that he find a partner. The interview dealt with the family's emotional and spiritual challenges after the release.

Ditza Or, mother of Avinatan Or who returned from Hamas captivity, gave her first interview since his return on the program "HaPatriotim," hosted by Yinon Magal. In a personal and moving interview, she described the complex feelings since her son's return: immense joy alongside deep pain for the hostages who have not yet come back. "On the other side of the heart there is crying and sadness and terrible shards, and absence and pain, a lot of challenges that still need healing," she said. She stressed that joy and mourning exist together, in the same moment. Or explained the source of her son's resilience through his birthday on Tu BiShvat and his connection to his roots: "Avinatan did not blossom, Avinatan is a tree. He is a strong, mighty, great tree." According to her, his strength comes from deep roots of Torah, commandments, faith in God and connection to the people of Israel, as well as from the settlement of Shiloh where he grew up. Regarding the parting from Noa Argamani, who was kidnapped together with him, she said it was a personal decision of her son, and that the two years in captivity changed both of them. She shared her personal prayer: "That he find the partner worthy of him from the root of his soul." Or related that what crushed Avinatan most in captivity was worry for his parents, more than anything he went through. She quoted the verse "and you shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave" from Jacob's fear of losing his son Benjamin, and explained that this was the greatest difficulty for him.