NEW YORK (PIX11) -- On Oct. 6, 2023, Orna and Ronen Neutra received a text message from their son, who was serving in the Israel Defense Forces. It was the last time they heard from him.
The next day, Omer Neutra was called to respond to the massacre at the Nova Music Festival. PIX11's Anthony DiLorenzo spoke with his family about this past year and their unwavering mission to bring him home to Long Island.
“If there’s one thing I’m envisioning, it’s [Omer] running out of Gaza into my arms,” Orna Neutra said.
Emotional and exhausted, the Neutras have been desperate for that day for a year now.
“It’s been a year not knowing his whereabouts, if he’s fed, getting water,” Ronen Neutra wondered.
Their son will be 23 years old next week — likely his second birthday in captivity after being kidnapped by Hamas.
The Israel Defense Forces soldier was responding to the massacre at the Nova Music Festival. The Neutras are clinging to hope that he’s still alive.
“I do think about my son alive and waiting to be rescued,” Orna said.
Omer was born in New York City and later moved to Long Island with his family, where they still own a small business. However, their whole being this past year has been devoted to diplomacy, meeting with leaders across the aisle in the hope of freeing the 100 hostages, including seven Americans. But they’re largely in the dark.
“They don’t have specifics on our son or hostages. We also know they are in proximity to the terrorists themselves,” Ronen explained.
“I haven’t heard his voice in a year; the uncertainty is unbearable,” Orna said.
Omer was an All-American athlete who diverted his university studies for a gap year in Israel. He has extended family there and joined the military.
Noy Leyb is also a New York City resident and Israel Defense Forces reservist who spent half the year hunting Hamas. He recalls that their special forces military exercises in Gaza led to critical intelligence.
“What we did in Gaza and the Lebanon border helped find the terrorists and led to information to bring hostages back home,” Leyb stated. “We found maps that gave us everything — all the tools we needed."
These included maps of tunnels where some of the hostages were being held. He and the Neutras are focused on the future when, as his shirt says, Israelis will dance again.
“I believe more than half are alive, and I hope so,” Leyb added.
While dozens of hostages have been killed, there is still hope. Over 100 hostages have been released or rescued. From Long Island, this mother has a message for her son, a world away.
“Stay strong, keep up hope as we keep up hope and survive until we get him,” Orna urged.
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