Release of Rom Braslavsky After Captivity
Rom Braslavsky, freed this week after spending two years in captivity at the hands of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, endured systematic torture during his time. His mother shared with Hebrew media that throughout his ordeal, he was shackled and faced repeated attempts to force him to abandon his Jewish faith for food. “They attempted to convert him to Islam with promises of food in return, yet Rom firmly insisted on keeping his Jewish identity,” she explained.
The 21-year-old from Jerusalem was taken during the Nova Music Festival on October 7, 2023, where he had been serving as a security guard and assisting in the evacuation of injured attendees before his arrest. He spent 737 days in isolation controlled by a terrorist group.
Tami Braslavsky, speaking to media from Sheba Hospital where her son is receiving care, described the brutal treatment he experienced — physical beatings and psychological manipulation designed to shatter his spirit and compel him to renounce his faith.
She recounted that guards would demand he convert to Islam and offered extra rations or small items if he engaged in Quran reading or observed Ramadan, but Rom consistently refused to yield.
Upon his return, one of Rom’s first actions was putting on tefillin, the small leather box containing Torah verses worn during weekday prayers. “As soon as he came home, he put on tefillin,” his mother noted.
Food as a Weapon During His Captivity
The captors weaponized food, using hunger to attack his faith. “They lured him to convert to Islam, suggesting that if he fasted during Ramadan, he’d receive food and basic necessities — but Rom stood firm,” she mentioned, explaining that guards would tempt him with extra food or hygiene items if he read the Quran.
Despite extreme hunger and fear, Rom did not relent to their demands, his mother recalled.
The psychological manipulation he faced took a toll on him. “Now that he’s back, he keeps affirming, ‘I’m Jewish,'” Tami said. “At first, I didn’t grasp why he repeatedly stated, ‘I’m a Jew’ and ‘I’m a strong Jew.’ Maintaining his Jewish identity was incredibly significant to him.”
Conditions of Captivity
Tami disclosed that during the initial weeks of his captivity, Rom was shackled on all four limbs in a cramped cell measuring just 3.3 feet by 3.3 feet. He received minimal sustenance — half a dry flatbread and a small portion of rice each night — and had to use a jar for his waste, which was collected nightly by his captors.
In one desperate moment, driven by hunger, he attempted to escape by cooking pasta. When his gas stove malfunctioned, he resorted to burning his clothes and books to boil water in the tiny-covered bathroom. This act drew the attention of people nearby, who pounded on doors and windows. “He feared for his life, afraid of being lynched,” Tami recollected.
Rom recalled the 2000 Ramallah lynching, where a mob killed two Israeli reservists and displayed their bloodied hands from a window. He whispered to himself that he wouldn’t allow himself to be taken. Hiding under a blanket, he was confronted by about 40 individuals breaking into the room, who recognized the handcuffs and realized there was a prisoner present.
As they approached, Rom recited, “Shema Israel,” a solemn Jewish affirmation of faith said in perilous situations. Luckily, his captors returned with keys, dispersed the gathering crowd, and relocated him to a slightly more favorable location without punitive action.
Escalation of Abuse
According to Tami, abuse against him intensified in the spring. “He was subjected to whippings and even worse things multiple times daily,” she mentioned, emphasizing the severity of his circumstances.
The maltreatment escalated particularly before two propaganda videos were released by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, showcasing Rom’s declining health as part of their psychological warfare tactic.
Throughout the ordeal, Rom would tell his mother, “Mom, I thought it would pass. I kept telling myself this is just a phase, and it will end.”
The captors bombarded him with misinformation, claiming that significant events had transpired, including Iranian bombings of Israel, in an effort to crush any hope he clung to. “They misled him about his family’s situation, insisting we had given up on him,” Tami said.
She was not taken underground until just days before his release, enduring conditions where she sometimes had to coexist with the remains of murdered hostages — bodies that remain among the numerous unreturned in Gaza, as per continuing conflicts post-ceasefire.
In the final period of his captivity, guards force-fed Rom, and he now continues to deal with fluctuating blood sugar levels. Since his return, he has declined material possessions and attention. “He keeps saying to me, ‘I don’t need anything. Just the sky, the sun, and the air,'” she noted, reflecting on his delicate mental state.
Continued Advocacy for Hostages
Rom’s release happened on Monday as part of a ceasefire and hostage exchange agreement brokered during President Donald Trump’s administration, ultimately bringing 20 surviving Israeli hostages back home. As former hostage Tal Shoham detailed, Hamas utilized starvation tactics and assaults to break prisoners held in secured tunnels.
Tami Braslavsky has urgently appealed for continued efforts to locate and support the remaining hostages. “This isn’t over. There are still 19 hostages and the families are anxiously waiting for their loved ones’ return, even if their hearts are breaking,” she emphasized.
“Hamas is aware of their whereabouts. We need to bring them home,” she declared.
With palpable relief, she expressed, “And I can finally say I’m home.”
Rom’s release coincided with President Trump’s landmark Gaza peace agreement, marking the return of all remaining Israeli hostages after an intense 737 days in captivity. In a recent address to Congress, Trump described this moment as the onset of a “new era of faith and hope.”
For Rom Braslavsky, who endured shackling, starvation, beating, and pressure to renounce his beliefs but ultimately stood firm, hope has become a reality.
