October 7 · Personal story
Ofry Brodutch
Abducted
October 7, 2023
Abduction location
Home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza
Current outcome
Released alive · November 26, 2023
Released alive after 51 days in captivity
01
Before October 7
Ofry Brodutch lived in Kibbutz Kfar Aza with her parents, Hagar and Avichai, and her younger brothers Yuval and Oriya. She was the eldest of the three children. Her uncle Aharon Brodutch, a scientist living in Toronto, described her visits to Canada and time with her Canadian cousins. The family travelled together, and Hagar later used memories of those trips to keep the children occupied in captivity. Ofry turned ten during the period in which the family was held in Gaza.
02
October 7
On October 7, Ofry sheltered in the family safe room with her mother and brothers. Avichai left to join the kibbutz emergency response team. Their young neighbour Avigail Idan, whose parents had been murdered, had come to their home for safety. Attackers entered the house and took Ofry, Hagar, the boys and Avigail to Gaza in the family car. Hagar later said Ofry saw burned homes and bodies during the journey through the kibbutz. Avichai was wounded and initially feared that his family had been killed.
03
In captivity
Ofry remained with her mother and brothers during their 51 days in captivity. Hagar described them being moved between apartments and suffering from hunger. In testimony reported in January 2024, she said each person received one pita with za’atar per day. The children could smell food being cooked for the captors while they remained hungry. Her father later explained that Hagar spent hours recalling family holidays with the children. They talked about trips to Australia and Thailand, and about food they missed. These details come from the parents’ accounts of how the family passed its days in Gaza.
04
Return
Ofry was released with Hagar, Yuval and Oriya on November 26, 2023. Avigail also returned. At Schneider Children’s Medical Center, the children met their father again. Avichai recalled seeing Ofry first when the lift doors opened at the hospital. He had brought favourite belongings from their damaged home to welcome the family. On Monday, November 27, the children were reunited with Rodney, their dog, who had survived the attack and stayed with Avichai during his campaign for their release.
05
After captivity
In December 2023, Aharon told The Canadian Press that Ofry was already talking about another summer visit to her Canadian cousins. He also described the family’s weight loss and the difficulty of talking about what had happened. In August 2025, Avichai said Ofry and Yuval were going to school while the family lived in Kibbutz Shefayim. He described them as happy children, while explaining that some loud noises still caused distress. The family celebrates November 26 as the day Ofry, her mother and brothers came home.