Kidnapping of Romi Gonen


Romi Gonen is an Israeli woman who was abducted by Hamas on October 7th 2023 during the Nova music festival massacre. She was released after 471 days in captivity as part of the January 2025 Gaza war ceasefire. During Romi's captivity she suffered from three cases of sexual abuse by her captures.

Romi Gonen

Romi Gonen was born on August 18, 2000 to Eitan Gonen and Meirav Leshem Gonen. She has four siblings: Yarden, Shachaf, Daria, and Adam. She lived in Kfar Vradim. When Gonen was in middle school, she received dance lessons from Etai Peri, who later joined Vertigo.

Kidnapping

Gonen arrived at the Nova Music Festival at 4:38 AM. Gonen was abducted as she tried to escape the Nova music festival when it was targeted by the militant group as part of the 7 October 2023 attack. Gonen's mother and sister said they spent nearly five hours speaking to Gonen as militants attacked the Nova music festival. Gonen while on the phone, told her family that roads clogged with abandoned cars made escape impossible and that she would seek shelter in some bushes. Gonen, her best friend, Gaya Halifa, and Ofir Tzarfati were evacuated from the Nova Music Festival by Ben Shimoni. However, the group was ambushed, with Shimoni and Halifa being killed, while Gonen and Tzarfati were wounded and abducted. Gonen was badly injured after being shot in her arm. Gonen managed to call to her mother at 10:15 AM. During the phone call, Gonen told her mother “They shot me, Mom, and I’m bleeding.” Gonen remained on the phone with her mother until Gonen was abducted at 10:58 AM. Gonen was pulled out of the car by her hair before being punched in the face. During her kidnapping, Gonen's family was able to trace her phone signal to Gaza.
Her family did not know if Gonen was still alive until they heard from released hostages that Romi had been held with them. One of the hostages released in November 2023 told Gonen’s family that Romi was alive, but her hand was in a bad condition.

Captivity

During Gonen's first day in captivity, she briefly met Emily Damari at Al-Shifa Hospital. They would be reunited in a tunnel 39 days later, and would spend the remaining 431 days of their captivity together. The two formed an extremely close bond, and Gonen who had received paramedic training before her abduction, helped treat Damari's injuries. Gonen and Damari were held as human shields for Izz al-Din Al-Haddad for 35 days. During her captivity, Gonen lost 10 kilograms and was held in tunnels and apartments.

Sexual abuse in captivity

On December 25, 2025, Gonen sat down with Channel 12’s Uvda for her first post-captivity interview, where she recounted multiple instances of sexual abuse by her captors. Gonen reported that the first assault happened on her fourth day in captivity, and the abuser was a doctor tasked with caring for her injuries sustained during her abduction by Hamas. Gonen said the second attack was a cameraman who filmed clips of her for propaganda. Gonen said the worst assault happened while she was trying to go to the bathroom. Gonen said after the bathroom assault her captor put a gun to her head and threatened to kill her if she told anyone. In an interview, Gonen said that Izz al-Din Al-Haddad told her that if she remained silent about being sexually assaulted in captivity, she would be prioritized for release in a deal.

Efforts to release

Gonen's mother, Meirav, was one of the most outspoken voices advocating for the return of the hostages, where she appeared nearly daily on Israeli news programs. During Gonen's captivity, her family started an initiative where people would wear leopard print on Wednesdays in honor of Gonen.
In December 2023, Gonen's grandmother, Dvora Leshem, knocked on the doors of a different minister each night during Hanukkah. During the holiday, Leshem knocked on the doors of Amir Ohana, Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz, Tzachi Hanegbi, Aryeh Deri, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yuli Edelstein, and Isaac Herzog. Leshem, who was born in Iran, also recorded a video requesting for Ayatollah Ali Khameini and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to help secure her granddaughter's release.
In June 2024, political commentator Briahna Joy Gray was fired from The Hill after rolling her eyes at Romi's sister, Yarden, after Yarden told Gray to "believe Israeli women." Later that month, Meirav Leshen Gonen spoke in front of the UN Humans Rights Council, which she criticized for releasing a COI report that did not adequately address sexual violence faced by Israelis on October 7th and as hostages.

Release

Romi Gonen was released along with Emily Damari and Doron Steinbrecher in January 2025. After Gonen's release she has had two surgeries on her hand since captivity. Gonen was discharged from the hospital in July of 2025, after spending half a year undergoing rehabilitation and two operations to treat the gunshot wound in her arm.
In March 2025, Damari and Gonen were honored before a soccer match featuring Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. and Hapoel Haifa F.C., with Gonen getting to visit Hapoel Haifa's locker room before the match.
In August 2025, one of Gonen's captors, Hazem Awni Naeem, was killed in an IDF airstrike.