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BOSTON \u2014 Three months after his release from Hamas captivity, Omer Shem Tov stood on the pitcher\u2019s mound at a Boston Red Sox game. Surrounded by supporters, he tossed out the first pitch, then raised his arms in celebration. His name flashed on the stadium billboard.<\/p>\n
The moment was emblematic of the newfound \u2014 and for Shem Tov, unsought and at times unsettling \u2014 celebrity the 22-year-old has found since his release from 505 days of captivity<\/a> in the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n Before being taken hostage, Shem Tov had just finished military service, was working in a restaurant, having fun with friends and planning an overseas trip. Now, he\u2019s in the public eye as he travels the globe campaigning for the release of the remaining 58 hostages<\/a> \u2014 a third of whom are believed still alive.<\/p>\n Upon his arrival at Boston\u2019s Logan International Airport Shem Tov was greeted by dozens of schoolchildren and their teachers \u2014 wearing \u201cBoston Loves Omer\u201d T-shirts \u2014 singing Israeli songs in Hebrew and dancing with him.<\/p>\n He toured Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL\u2019s New England Patriots and Major League Soccer\u2019s New England Revolution. He met with an Israeli player for the Revolution, and saw the Patriots\u2019 six Super Bowl rings. Both teams are owned by entrepreneur Robert Kraft, whose foundation campaigns against antisemitism.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t like the word, but I\u2019m famous,\u201d Shem Tov acknowledged of the chance to throw out the first pitch at his very first baseball game ever, and the other firsts he\u2019s had in Boston.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that a lot of people, a big nation waited for me and a lot of people (fought) for me to come back home,\u201d he said of the international campaign waged by hostage families since the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks<\/a>, when 251 hostages were seized and about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed by Hamas-led militants.<\/p>\n More than 53,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children have been killed in Israel\u2019s retaliatory offensive in Gaza, according to Gaza\u2019s Health Ministry. Huge areas of Gaza have been destroyed and around 90% of its population displaced.<\/p>\n A return to normal, but also a sense of guilt<\/p>\n Shem Tov believes he is doing \u201csomething important\u201d but said it \u201ccan be hard.\u201d His return to normal life has not been without challenges. He still freezes when he hears the sound of a jet plane, and is wracked with guilt that things he now enjoys are beyond the reach of the remaining hostages.<\/p>\n \u201cI get greeted in the street. People stop me and want selfies and stuff like this,\u201d he said. \u201cI support it and I will speak to anyone, anyone, anyone … because everyone wants to give out love.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, little things like \u201cgoing and grabbing a bite to eat, I feel it here,\u201d Shem Tov said, clutching his throat. \u201cIt\u2019s choking me that I know what they are going through. Maybe they don\u2019t have food.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI remember taking the first bite of anything, it was heavenly,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m showering and I have guilt that they don\u2019t take a shower.\u201d<\/p>\n Shem Tov, who was attending the Tribe of Nova music festival in southern Israel the day of the attack, described trying to flee with friends Maya and Itay Regev in a car driven by Ori Danino, a stranger who took them in. Militants shot at the car, forced them out and dragged them into Gaza. The Regev siblings were released in a November 2023 ceasefire; Danino was later killed.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember the festival itself, the freedom and happiness and us as youth having fun,\u201d Shem Tov said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn seconds, life changed for us. My friends who were there with me, some got killed. Those who came back, they are not the same.\u201d<\/p>\n Living in darkness<\/p>\n Shem Tov said he was initially held above ground with Itay Regev, shuttled between apartments in Gaza \u2014 wearing women\u2019s cloths to hide their identities.<\/p>\n He was eventually moved to a cell 130 feet underground, where he was often in total darkness. He survived on little more than a biscuit daily, he said \u2014 dropping from around 176 pounds to 121 pounds.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were times I thought, I\u2019m blind. I have been starved. I have been spat on. I\u2019ve been cursed. Difficult, difficult times,\u201d Shem Tov said.<\/p>\n His faith got him through the worst, he said. He began daily conversations with God, offering a greeting and, over time, thanks for all he had \u2014 the \u201cair in my lungs,\u201d \u201cthe small amounts of food that I have\u201d and that his family was safe.<\/p>\n Shem Tov said he initially wasn\u2019t aware of the battle raging above him. But when he was moved to a tunnel closer to the surface, he could hear Israeli tanks rumbling above and bombs shaking the area.<\/p>\n At one point, he could hear Israeli soldiers\u2019 voices through a ventilation unit.<\/p>\n \u201cAs much as I was glad to hear them, I was very, very scared for my life,\u201d he said. \u201cThe captors that kept me in the tunnels told me as soon as the army or soldiers are heading here, we\u2019ll shoot you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018The first time I feel safe\u2019<\/p>\n When he was released on Feb. 22 with five others as part of a ceasefire deal, video showed Shem Tov surrounded by masked, armed Hamas fighters. Under duress, he was seen kissing the head of a Hamas fighter and blowing kisses to the crowd. A van passed in front of the stage, he recalled, and a door opened revealing two hostages who were not being released.<\/p>\n He was handed over to the Red Cross and taken to an area controlled by the Israeli military. \u201cI get out of the vehicle, I look around, I see the sky, the sun. The first time, I feel safe,\u201d he said, adding that he asked an Israeli soldier if he could hug her.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the first time in forever I feel love and warmth,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Shem Tov was taken to meet his parents \u2014 his mother, Shelly Shem Tov,<\/a> had kept his bedroom as he left it, with instructions that nobody should touch or clean it until he came home and did it himself.<\/p>\n \u201cI see my mom and my dad and I run up to them, and I hug them,\u201d Shem Tov said. \u201cI waited for this moment for so long. I imagined it for so long. This is what I want every hostage to experience.\u201d<\/p>\n Shem Tov has embraced the role of advocating for those still hostage \u2014 something his parents were already doing \u2014 telling anyone who listens they must be brought home.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really fulfilling. I love what I am doing but don\u2019t like the cause,\u201d he said. \u201cI wish they were all here today. I hope it will be soon and in good circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n And while he is reluctant to talk politics, Shem Tov worries Israel\u2019s latest offensive in Gaza<\/a> puts the remaining hostages in danger.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery soldier for me is a hero,\u201d he said. \u201cBut there is a big but. For me and the hostages, it\u2019s difficult for us while the army is in the area. Places near us are being bombed. I support the army but we have to get them out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf you keep on going with the military pressure, there is a big chance they will be killed.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n