The Rav of Sheba Medical Center, Rabbi Yoav Oknin, spoke about his meeting with with Almog Meir Jan, one of the hostages rescued during Operation Arnon.

After the rescue mission release, Rabbi Oknin was told that Almog wanted to meet him. Rabbi Oknin shared that Almog told him: “You have no idea how happy I am to meet a Rabbi.” Rabbi Oknin recounted: “He said this and cried for several minutes”.

Almog spoke with the Rav about missing Chagim while he was held hostage in Gaza: “I was in that place for many months, missing Pesach, missing Chanukkah, we would hear on the radio and know it was the eve of a holiday. I missed doughnuts, I missed the holidays,” Rabbi Oknin relayed.

Almog shared with the Rav that: “What kept me going was faith”. “I said what I knew, I said ‘Shema Yisrael’, ‘Modeh Ani’, that’s what I knew, that’s what I said.”

The morning following his release, Almog wore a Kippah from his Bar Mitzvah. Per Rabbi Oknin’s calculations, According to the Almog’s Torah reading for his Bar Mitzvah was on the Shabbos of the Parashas Bamidbar. “On the Shabbat of Bamidbar, that’s your rescue Shabbat, you have another Bar Mitzvah Shabbat”, Rabbi Oknin told Almog.

Almog, from Or Yehuda, was taken hostage from the Nova festival on October 7th, Jan, 22, from Or Yehuda, was abducted from the Nova party in the Re’im area on October 7th, and was held hostage by Hamas for 246 days.

On Friday, he spoke publicly for the first time, saying: “I want to tell the entire nation of Israel thank you for welcoming me back like this, you are all amazing, all the effort and the madness since I came back, the warm embrace I haven’t received in so long.”

“To our army, I have to compliment it and say it’s the strongest army there is. Honestly, I have no words”, Almog continued, “One last thing, I want to tell my government – I pray every day that all the captives will return. Just as I returned, I want everyone to return to their families, and for us to return to being united and one nation.”

{Matzav.com}