When Amit Madmon read on her phone that her grandmother, Ofelia Roitman (77), woke up to missile sirens, she called her and heard her joking about making coffee on her way to the bomb shelter. After all contact with Ofelia was lost, Amit and her mother Natalie say on video they are certain grandma is taking care of the children around her, just like she used to do for the last 20 years.
"She was likely kidnapped on Saturday and no contact was made since then.
"My mother has been an educator her whole life. For 20 years she whe taught 1st and 2nd grade students, she loved children very much, she loved life, she loved the Kibbutz. She's an amazing grandmother for her nine grandchildren. My father and mother are both peace activists. They have always said there's enough room here for everyone.
"I was in Thailand, and I wake up for breakfast and see the first missile siren, I immediately call my grandmother, and she jokes with me and tells me 'I went to make myself coffee, and closed everything up, now I'm in the safe room and everything will be fine'. And we really didn't imagine such a thing could happen.
"At 9:40 we lost contact with her, and we convinced ourselves that there's no cell service, because that's what we were told. We waited hours and hours. I tried finding ways to call someone. After 8 o'clock I managed to lovate someone who could go into Mom's house. The scene was described to us, and by that description they said she's probably kidnapped and left the house alive. A lot of people were murdered, so you can see the bodies – and at Mom's there wasn't one.
"Unfortunately we couldn't find any videos of her (despite the fact) there are many videos of people who were kidnapped from the Kibbutz.
"I talk to her when I close my eyes, and I ask her to be strong, and I'm sure if there are children there around her, she can make them cookies, and give them something to drink, and take care of them – because that's who she was.
"So we ask the whole world, bring back all the hostages, bring back my mother, grandmother, Ofelia Roitman. Bring her back here alive."
