You can’t tell from looking at him which hell he went through.
Omer Wenkert, who was released in February 2025 after 505 days as a hostage in Gaza, gave a vivid account of his experiences last Monday evening in the main hall of the ICZ. On October 7, 2023, when he was crammed into a bunker with his childhood friend and forty other Nova Festival participants seeking protection from the approaching terrorists, he had finished with his life. What he experienced over the next few hours can hardly be described. He only left the bunker to escape the fire, fully aware that he would be murdered outside. He had not even considered being abducted to Gaza.

The 250 guests who listened to him spellbound learned how Omer mobilized his inner strength during the worst months in complete isolation in order not to lose his mind. But Omer also told of humiliations and brutal beatings. He talked about the structured daily routine that he and his fellow sufferers, who spent the last months in the tunnels with him, followed in order to feel like human beings. And finally, he described his release, his victory. The audience rose to a standing ovation, overwhelmed by the strength that the 24-year-old Omer exudes.

Tali Scheiner, President of Keren Hajessod Zurich, underlined the importance of projects for the healing of long-term psychological damage when she presented the Shavim program.  This helps reservists to prevent PTSD after their return from the front and to find their way back into everyday life. The extent of the long-term effects on the psyche of those affected by trauma can currently be seen in the sad increase in suicides in Israel.

Flotilla Admiral Daniel Hagari, former press spokesman for the Israeli army, then took to the stage. He had been in office for a few months at the start of the war, but nothing had prepared him for October 7, 2023. His account made it clear what a complex, almost impossible task awaited him. He had to transform the chaos, the contradictory information and the lack of answers into convincing statements in order to give Israeli society a sense of security and restore their trust in the army. He had made this his top priority on the day of the attack. Then there was the sudden onslaught of the international media. And he repeatedly had to refute misinformation with facts in order to correct the negative narrative as quickly as possible. He also only gradually became aware of the reach of his appearances. After the release of the first hostages, he learned that they were also watching his press conferences in Gaza. He then tried to give the remaining hostages hidden encouragement through his statements. Also after his lecture, the audience rose to their feet, deeply moved.

The singing of Hatikva concluded this memorable but also inspiring evening.