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A witness told 'The Citizen' how her life changed in one fateful day.
The mother of a kidnapped Israeli man, Olan Ohel is still pleading for her sons return from Gaza. Picture: Itumeleng Mafisa
The City of Jerusalem is one of the oldest in the world, with its history holding a special place in the hearts of many Christians, Muslims, and Jews.
This is the land where Jesus died, and where some of the holy sites of Judaism and Islam lie, including the mosque of Al-Aqsa.
Consensus among these religions is their belief that Jerusalem is a land of peace and where mercy from God overflows.
However, for almost a century, there has been a fight over a piece of land equal to South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
The Jewish people were exiled from the land of their forefathers for hundreds of years. This led them to live in foreign lands such as parts of Europe, where they were treated with disdain, persecuted, and murdered in what we now describe as the holocaust.
Their return to Israel over the last eight decades has led to tensions with the Palestinians, who were in that region before the state of Israel was founded in 1948.
Palestinians have described Israelis as settlers and neo-colonialists. They have also accused them of stealing vast amounts of land.
The United Nations (UN) and other countries around the world have tried intervening in the dispute, but this has failed for generations.
Tensions boiled over again on October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas stormed into parts of Israel, murdering and kidnapping Israeli soldiers and civilians. Around 1 200 Israelis reportedly died in explosions, gunfire, and stabbings.
Soon after the attacks, Israel retaliated with an offensive that killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
Speaking to The Citizen, one survivor said she lost four children in the October 7 attacks and has attended numerous funerals of family members and friends since.
Her body shivers as she describes how her life changed in one day.
“I feel I was betrayed. I feel that I was betrayed by people whom I thought I could make peace with. What they did to us is not even human.
“They treated us like animals, they raped and they killed for our land,” Orit Tszedikovitch said.
Tzedikovitch said, despite living in biblical lands, she does not see the Palestinians as brothers and sisters anymore.
“I do not believe we pray to the same God after what they did to us.”
What is left of her village are homes with bullet holes, broken windows, burnt furniture, and damaged ceilings from the explosions.
“They said they are doing all of this in the name of God, but no God will allow this.”
The Citizen also met Idit Ohel, a mother of one of the hostages taken by Hamas.
Olan Ohel is a pianist who was taken during attacks at the Nova Trans Festival, not far from the border with Gaza.
His mother said she has been told that Olan has bomb shrapnel in one of his eyes and has not received medical attention for his wounds since he was taken nearly two years ago.
Hostages who have seen Olan told Idit that he is strong and always tries to help others.
“I believe that he is still alive and that he will one day come back to us.”
A yellow piano has been placed in the town, at a place now known as hostage square.
A tunnel has also been built there to expose people to the reported living conditions in the Gaza tunnels.
It has been reported that the hostages receive little food and water. They are shackled and, after a certain period of time, their shackles are checked and tightened to make sure they do not run away.
Idit said she has been mentally and emotionally affected by her son’s kidnapping, but she still believes in God.
“I live in hope. I have seen people being released, and I am hoping that the next turn will be my son’s.
“My hope is in God.”
Idit said some of the hostages knew the dates and times because of the five prayers that would happen each day.
“They count the days and they know when it’s night and when it’s day because of the prayers,” she said.
Meanwhile, in the West Bank town of Ramallah, a statue of former South African president Nelson Mandela lies outside the mausoleum of Yasser Arafat, a Palestinian liberation icon.
Arafat’s wish at the time of his death was to be buried in Jerusalem.
But the Israeli government rejected this wish and instead brought stone and soil from Jerusalem for Arafat’s burial. At the time, some feared burying Arafat in Jerusalem would lead to further tensions between the Palestinians and the Israelis.
When the state of Israel was formed, some Palestinians were taken to what was at the time described as a refugee camp in Ramallah. The camp has now evolved into a community of families and the working class. Many believe that they will one day return to the land of their fathers, present-day Israel.
There, The Citizen met an Arab man who only wanted to be identified as Nader.
Nader said he is terrified of the Israel Defence Forces because “they often harass Palestinians.”
“They harass us for no reason. I have been shot by them. They do not need a reason to shoot at us, they see us as animals,” he said.
Another Palestinian who asked not to be named said the Israeli government controls how Palestinians live, including giving them access to water and creating checkpoints in different territories.
“Since 1967, the state of Israel has had exclusive rights over the water. They determine how much water should be given to Palestinian homes.”
He said tensions between Israelis and Palestinians are so bad that Israelis are warned through signboards not to enter what is called Area A, where the Palestinian government has full authority.
“Today, Israeli citizens are not permitted to enter the West Bank. After October 7, they are not permitting Israelis to enter the West Bank because of tensions.”
Tourism in Jerusalem has gone down since October 7.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City used to receive hundreds of visitors every day during Lent and Easter, but the numbers have gone down.
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Despite the war, all holy sites in Jerusalem, which are important to the Abrahamic religions, remain preserved.
However, mistrust between the Arabs and the Jews can be felt in the anger expressed by both sides.
Despite these tensions, some Arabs are living in Israel and are considered citizens.
One of them told The Citizen that he has just as many rights in Israel as a Jew.
There are calls for a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine.
However, it is not clear if this will work with the tensions and heartbreaks that reignited on October 7.
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