October 7 · Personal story
Yoram Metzger
Abducted
October 7, 2023
Abduction location
Kibbutz Nir Oz
Current outcome
Returned for burial · August 20, 2024
His body was recovered from Gaza on August 20, 2024, and buried at Nir Oz on August 22.
01
Before October 7
Yoram built his life in Nir Oz with Tamar. They raised three children and had seven grandchildren. He worked for decades at the Nirlat factory, then as a mechanic in the kibbutz garage. Friends knew him as an excellent cook, a man with a ready sense of humor and a lover of history; he liked the Beatles and played accordion and recorder. He was also part of the kibbutz’s wine group: friends grew grapes, made their own wine and brought bottles to community celebrations. The harvest and the work around the barrels tied the wine to the life of the kibbutz.
02
October 7
On October 7, Yoram and Tamar were at home in Nir Oz when attackers came into the kibbutz. They had promised children and grandchildren they would enter the safe room when the alarms sounded. At 8:50 a.m. they sent the family their last message. The couple was taken from their home. Tamar was released on November 28, 2023, in the first hostage exchange; their family then waited for news of Yoram. His kidnapping separated a couple who had shared decades of kibbutz life and a family with three generations rooted in the community.
03
Captivity
In testimony recorded on 26 May 2025, Tamar described finding Yoram again after she had been taken through houses and underground passages in Gaza. They were held with other hostages in a tunnel complex. Alex Dancyg and Chaim Peri gave talks to help the group pass the time. Yoram spoke Arabic with their captors and acted as a contact for the group; Nili Margalit sought medication and cared for them. When women and children began to be released in November 2023, Yoram urged Tamar to go because their children were waiting. She returned on 28 November, underwent heart surgery and later joined the displaced Nir Oz community in Karmi Gat, still waiting for him. On 3 June 2024, the IDF announced that he had died in captivity. The IDF’s December 2024 investigation considered it highly probable that the deaths of Yoram and five other hostages were connected to a nearby strike on 14 February. Investigators found indications of gunfire on their bodies but could not determine the exact cause of death or timing of the shooting with complete certainty. The investigation also left open death before the strike or shooting after death.
04
Return
Israeli forces recovered Yoram’s body from Gaza on August 20, 2024. Two days later, family and friends gathered at Nir Oz for his funeral. His daughter-in-law Ayala spoke there as the community received back a person it had first lost from its homes and daily life, then awaited through his captivity.
05
Aftermath
Yoram was buried in the kibbutz where he had lived and worked. Tamar, three children and seven grandchildren survived him. In the winery that Yoram and his friends helped build, the grapes and bottles had connected the group to shared breakfasts and kibbutz celebrations. The community continued the vineyard after the attack, carrying forward a place Yoram had helped make part of its life. His family’s account of the last year now sits alongside those ordinary details: a mechanic, cook, musician and friend who had made a home in Nir Oz.