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A tragic story of an Israeli family of five found dead in each other's arms after Hamas assault
Hamas terrorists invade Israel, killing a family of five and a couple about to get engaged. IDF soldiers rescue woman and son trapped in their home.
The horror of the unprecedented invasion by Hamas terrorists on Israel on Oct. 7 was revealed by the stories of some of the victims, including a family of five who died in each other’s arms and a couple who were about to get engaged.
The Kutz family — Aviv, 54, Livnat, 49, Rotem, 19, Yonatan, 17, and Yiftach, 17 — were found dead in their bed in their home in Kfar Aza, near the Gaza border, after the terrorists stormed into Israel. They were hugging each other when they were killed, according to the Times of Israel.
“We were supposed to visit them on the day they were murdered,” Adi Levy Salama, the aunt of the children, told the outlet.
“Aviv organized an annual kite festival along the fence with Gaza to show them that we just want to live in peace,” she said.
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Aviv was a deputy director of a consulting firm and an agricultural worker. Livnat was a graphic designer who was born during the Yom Kippur War — the 1973 conflict that has been likened to the current crisis because of Israel’s intelligence failure. Rotem was an IDF soldier who trained new recruits. Yonatan and Yiftach were students at the Kfar Hayarok boarding school in Ramat Hasharon near Tel Aviv and basketball players in the Hapoel youth program.
“They were all amazing kids with huge hearts. They had their whole lives ahead of them,” their grieving aunt said. Another couple from Kfar Aza — IDF officers Niral Zini, 31, and Niv Raviv, 27 — also lost their lives before they could realize their dreams. Zini planned to propose to Raviv on Oct. 10, but the ring he bought for her was found in the ashes of their house at the kibbutz, Ynet reported.
Zini sent his family a chilling message before the attack: “They’re here. I’m putting the phone down — pray.”
He tried to hold off the terrorists with a knife as he blocked the door to the shelter where Raviv hid under a bed, according to the outlet.
The couple remained missing until Friday, when their families learned that their bodies had been discovered after the massacre.
On Saturday, hundreds of mourners attended their funerals in Netanya. Zini and Raviv were both in the military reserves — he a major and she a captain.
On Oct. 10, 2015, Zini was wounded during an operation in Hebron — and since then, the couple celebrated his survival with a special meal every year on that date, according to the outlet. He planned to study law to help soldiers who were physically and mentally injured. Raviv was studying to become a clinical psychologist.
“That’s how they were,” Shahar Schechter, the partner of Gil, Niv’s older brother, told Ynet.
“Always thought of the other, always wanted to help. Give of themselves, loved people so much. … only give and help those who need it."
Some people survived the terrifying ordeal, thanks to the heroic efforts of IDF soldiers. A video released by the IDF showed how members of the special forces Oketz Unit rescued a woman and her son who had been trapped in their home for hours.
“It’s the IDF, it’s the IDF,” a soldier said in Hebrew as he approached them.
“How are you? Everything is OK. Happy holiday, happy holiday. Are you with someone here?”
“With my son,” the woman answered from behind a door.
