Release of hostages in Gaza –
“If Romi comes out of this without any after-effects, it’s a miracle”
Vaudoise Jardena Puder is a member of the family of Romi Gonen, one of the three hostages released today as part of the truce agreement between Israel and Hamas. Exclusive testimony.
Published today at 3:50 p.m.
Romi Gonen is the daughter of Jardena Puder’s cousin, who lives in Lausanne.
AFP
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Jardena Puder lives in Lausanne. His cousin’s daughter, Romi Gonen, is one of the three hostages released by Hamas, after fifteen months of hell in the basements of Gaza. She tells us her first impressions.
“We don’t yet know what state Romi is in,” sobs the Lausanne resident. It will be in the hands of the Red Cross in the coming hours. There was no contact between her and the family. Only her mother, Meirav, was informed by the army that her daughter was going to be released by Hamas.” His heart swings between relief and great uncertainty.
-Romi was kidnapped on October 7 while participating in the Nova festival, the scene of a real massacre, in which 364 people were killed by Hamas terrorists. The first hours of his captivity were recorded on the telephone.
Hand injury
“When she was taken hostage, she found herself tossed around in several different cars trying to flee across fields. Three of his friends were murdered. She took a bullet in her right hand. In the final minutes of the phone call, the last thing her mother heard was a voice asking “do we kill her or take her?” Then the network gave up. We no longer knew anything!”
The first news came a month later, in November 2023, when the first freed hostages recounted the horror of the underground labyrinth. “Romi had been seen alive. His hand wound was infected. But we didn’t have any more information! At 22 years old, with her blonde hair, she could very well have been raped by her captors. Maybe she’s pregnant… To this day, we still don’t know what happened to her in these galleries.”
471 days of captivity
Jardena Puder stops speaking for a few moments. In his silence, we feel his worst thoughts rushing around. Then she continues: “As Romi is one of the first hostages released, we can imagine that it is because of an injury that needs treatment. After 471 days of captivity, she must have been a spectator of so much suffering, so much mistreatment… If she comes out of this without any after-effects, it’s a miracle.”
Notifications rain down on his Whatsapp every minute. But for the moment, no news on Romi’s condition. “It’s so difficult to live with, even from a distance… I’m the same age as his mother. I grew up with her. The links are very strong, murmurs the Lausanne resident. Romi is a day older than my son. The last time I saw her was in 2023, a few months before her kidnapping.”
Thibault New Weme is a journalist for the Vaud section. After a Bachelor’s degree in political science, he obtained his Master’s degree at the Academy of Journalism and Media (AJM) at the University of Neuchâtel. He also worked with the editorial staff of Le Temps.More info
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