Speaker 1: Tapes from the Dark Side contains descriptions of violence and sexuality.
Speaker 1: Listener discretion is advised. It started like any ordinary Saturday
Speaker 1: morning in southern Israel. Families were still waking up, children played.
Speaker 1: There was a music festival in the desert, people dancing
Speaker 1: under the early sun. But just after dawn, a sound
Speaker 1: tore through the calm. Thousands of rockets fired from the
Speaker 1: Gaza Strip overwhelmed Israel's Iron Dome defense system. Cities and
Speaker 1: towns across the south were hit. People ran for cover,
Speaker 1: confusus and spreading faster than the blasts themselves. And then
Speaker 1: something no one expected, motorized paragliders, small, silent carrying armed militants.
Speaker 1: It was a surreal scene to behold dozens of Hamas
Speaker 1: fighters soaring over the border wall, empowered gliders dropping into
Speaker 1: israel territory with deadly precision. At the same time, others
Speaker 1: breached the border fence on the ground, storming into towns
Speaker 1: and villages. They attacked homes, kidnapped civilians, and gun down
Speaker 1: festival goers who had nowhere to run. The scenes were brutal, devastating,
Speaker 1: and broadcasts across the world in real time. Hamas themselves
Speaker 1: had recorded the damage they had done. They wore go
Speaker 1: pros and carried cameras with them. They wanted everyone to
Speaker 1: know of the atrocities they committed that day, and by
Speaker 1: the time the day was over, over one thousand lives
Speaker 1: were lost, Entire communities were shattered. Israel launched a full
Speaker 1: scale military response, beginning what would become one of the
Speaker 1: most intense escalations in the region in decades. October seventh
Speaker 1: wasn't just an attack. It was a turning point, a
Speaker 1: moment where everything changed, and the ripple effects are still
Speaker 1: being felled across the Middle East. Today we will be
Speaker 1: examining the attack on one Israeli village, or more accurately
Speaker 1: called a kibbutz. Before we dive in, I want to
Speaker 1: explain what exactly is a kibbutz. But before we even
Speaker 1: do that, I want to offer a brief disclaimer. While
Speaker 1: today's focus will be on the events of October seventh,
Speaker 1: I want to make it clear that this is not
Speaker 1: an attempt to downplay or ignore the terror faced by
Speaker 1: Palestinian civilians, nor is in an excuse for the atrocities
Speaker 1: committed by Israe leadership against Palestinians. I fully acknowledge the pain, loss,
Speaker 1: and suffering experienced by them as well, and in a
Speaker 1: later episode we may even dive into their complex history
Speaker 1: and trauma. So what is a kibbutz? The term kibbutz
Speaker 1: comes from the Hebrew word for gathering. Kibbutzim are a
Speaker 1: distinct form of communal living found only in Israel, with
Speaker 1: around two hundred and seventy of them scattered throughout the country.
Speaker 1: At their core, these kibbutzim function like small towns, typically
Speaker 1: home to between one hundred and one thousand people. Traditionally
Speaker 1: they're based on collective farming, but many have evolved to
Speaker 1: focus on modern industries and even tourism. Kibbutzim are deeply
Speaker 1: rooted in Socialists and Marxist principles of communal life. The
Speaker 1: early kibbutzim represented bold experiments in radical democracy. Living in
Speaker 1: a kibbutz offers a unique blend of community, routine, and
Speaker 1: shared responsibility. A typical day might begin with an early
Speaker 1: breakfast in the communal dining hall, followed by a few
Speaker 1: hours of work, perhaps in agriculture, a local factory, or
Speaker 1: running guest accommodations. Afternoons might include shared childcare duties, study,
Speaker 1: or even leisure time with people gathering for coffee or
Speaker 1: a swim at the communal pool. Evenings often involve community events, music,
Speaker 1: or casual gatherings under the stars. Daily life is very
Speaker 1: much shaped by cooperation, a slower pace, and a strong
Speaker 1: sense of belonging. Kibbutzen be Erie, which is the one
Speaker 1: we will be focusing on today, is located in southern Israel,
Speaker 1: near the Gaza border, and was established officially on October sixth,
Speaker 1: nineteen forty six, as part of of the Eleven Points
Speaker 1: of the Negev initiative. Founded by members of a youth movement,
Speaker 1: the kibbutz was later joined by Jewish immigrants from Iraq,
Speaker 1: including survivors of the nineteen forty one Farhud pogrim in Baghdad.
Speaker 1: The Farhud was a violent anti Jewish pogram that took
Speaker 1: place in Baghdad in nineteen forty one, during which hundreds
Speaker 1: of Jews were killed or injured and homes and businesses
Speaker 1: were looted and destroyed amid a brief pro Nazi coup
Speaker 1: in Iraq. In its early years, be Erie focused on
Speaker 1: land reclamation and agriculture. Over time, it's developed a robust economy,
Speaker 1: notably through its printing press, which became a significant source
Speaker 1: of income. The views of people living in Israeli kibbutzim,
Speaker 1: especially near the Gaza Strip, are nuanced and shaped by
Speaker 1: decades of both idealism and trauma. They were supposed to
Speaker 1: be places of peace, quiet, communal, idealistic. The kibutzim of
Speaker 1: southern Israel, just miles from the Gaza Strip, stood for
Speaker 1: something rare in this region, hope. For decades, these collective
Speaker 1: communities clung to a vision, a vision of coexistence, of dialogue,
Speaker 1: of peace. These were not frontline soldiers. They were farmers, teachers,
Speaker 1: peace activists, people who had long spoken up for Palestinian rights,
Speaker 1: people who believed in humanity. But now everything had changed.
Speaker 1: Before the attack, many in the kibbutzim opposed net Nyahu's
Speaker 1: hardline policies. They spoke out against Israeli occupation of the
Speaker 1: West Bank. Some had even worked side by side with
Speaker 1: Palestinians from Gaza, employing them, supporting them, even sharing holidays.
Speaker 1: Before the blockade, these people or the bridge, But now
Speaker 1: that bridge was about to be set on fire. Before
Speaker 1: we dive into the meat of today's story, I want
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Speaker 1: a quick break for an ad and we'll be right back.
Speaker 1: Don't go anywhere.
Speaker 2: Part one, The Baker Family.
Speaker 1: It was five point fifty seven am on a Saturday morning.
Speaker 1: The sky was just beginning to brighten, the haze of
Speaker 1: twilight engulf the town. The air was still. At the
Speaker 1: entrance to Kibbutz ba Arie, a yellow the metal gate
Speaker 1: stood closed behind it, a quiet village still waking, And
Speaker 1: then it began armed Hamas militants arrived. Suddenly they were
Speaker 1: at the yellow gate, automatic rifles slung across their chests
Speaker 1: Kalishnikov's or also known as Ak forty seven's. One of
Speaker 1: them smashed the window of the guard station with the
Speaker 1: butt of his gun. The booth was empty, and he
Speaker 1: climbed inside. Another attacker lay camouflaged in the nearby trees,
Speaker 1: hidden waiting. Approximately twenty seconds later, a dark race sedan
Speaker 1: approached the gate. Inside was Ben, a yahoo Bitan twenty
Speaker 1: two years old, and two of his friends. They had
Speaker 1: spent the night dancing at a rave just two miles away,
Speaker 1: but now the rave was under attack and they were fleeing.
Speaker 1: They looked terrified. They were trying to find safety. They
Speaker 1: thought they'd found it at the entrance to bey Arie,
Speaker 1: but their lives were tragically about to come to an end.
Speaker 1: As the gate had begun to slide open. Benayahu didn't
Speaker 1: see the second gunman stepped from the shadows. He didn't
Speaker 1: see the rifle raised, bullets tore into the car. Bena
Speaker 1: Yahoo jerked in his seat and then went still. His
Speaker 1: friends also lifeless beside him, and then the car crept forward,
Speaker 1: ghost like through the open gate. It rolled twenty yards
Speaker 1: into the kibbutz and then stopped. Three young lives gone
Speaker 1: in an instant, and with that the massacre of bee
Speaker 1: Arie had begun. Once the gates were breached, hamas flooded
Speaker 1: the outpost. Over the next few minutes, over one hundred
Speaker 1: terrorists entered the Kibbutz Behri on foot. First, we will
Speaker 1: examine the tragic fate of the Baker family. Avida, fifty
Speaker 1: years old, was patriarch of the family. His wife Dana
Speaker 1: two years is younger, and with them two of their children,
Speaker 1: Carmel male fifteen years old and Hadar female thirteen years old.
Speaker 1: We will hear firsthand testimony from the father, Avida and
Speaker 1: his barely teenage daughter Adar. First, Avida recounts the moment
Speaker 1: they knew something was wrong. Shevokatva komashnya six thirty am.
Speaker 1: My wife and I are upstairs. We hear the missile
Speaker 1: sirens and gunfire from outside, and we say to each other,
Speaker 1: this isn't something. This isn't the same. We go into
Speaker 1: the safe room and decide to lock ourselves in and
Speaker 1: keep the door shut. We hear open the door and
Speaker 1: I tell him go away in Arabic, and he's trying
Speaker 1: to open the door and I resist and I tell
Speaker 1: him go away, it's just children, go away. And before
Speaker 1: I know it, we get hit by a burst from
Speaker 1: a Kalishna cough. Carmel's arm flies off. His arm flies
Speaker 1: off like crazy. There's blood everywhere, and Hadar tells him, Carmel,
Speaker 1: stay with us. You're not leaving us no way, and
Speaker 1: he tells me again open the door, and then I
Speaker 1: get hit by another burst. The door almost flies off
Speaker 1: with shrapnel and fire and I get hit. My legs
Speaker 1: is running if Next we have a series of messages
Speaker 1: from a WhatsApp group chat called Family of Champs. All
Speaker 1: the messages are from Hadar, the thirteen year old. I'm
Speaker 1: coming to me. We love you. Dad and Carmel are injured.
Speaker 1: Please call for help as ap. Please. We love you
Speaker 1: more than anything. Please come help us. Help us. They're
Speaker 1: burning us. We can't. They're burning us. They're burning us.
Speaker 1: We love you all. We love you all so much. Bye. Eventually,
Speaker 1: Dana got hit from the Kalishna cough. I heard her
Speaker 1: go out of I can't breathe, and she passed out.
Speaker 1: At this point, I tell Hadar listen, Mommy doesn't feel anything.
Speaker 1: Now I feel Dana and she's cold. That's it. She's
Speaker 1: out of the game. I tell Hadar, listen, we need
Speaker 1: to focus on Carmel. At this point, we go back
Speaker 1: to the WhatsApp group chat again. These messages are all
Speaker 1: from Hadar. Please help us. They threw three grenades at us.
Speaker 1: Please help us. We're dying here. Please hold on. I can't.
Speaker 1: We're all injured. They threw three grenades at us. There's
Speaker 1: smoke everywhere. I love you all. We love you all.
Speaker 1: We love you all. Carmel, stay with us. Don't close
Speaker 1: your eyes. Mommy, stay with us. My foot is injured,
Speaker 1: full of holes. Dad's both feet are hurting. Carmel two, Mommy,
Speaker 1: I don't know. Mommy is about to die. I'm telling
Speaker 1: you help us. Ask anyone that can help us to
Speaker 1: come please. Then what we have is a frantic video
Speaker 1: call that the thirteen year old Hdar had with an
Speaker 1: emergency operator. I'll try to translate again as best as
Speaker 1: I can.
Speaker 2: Okay, operator, Okay, Haidar, We're with you, Adar.
Speaker 1: Adar Hello operator?
Speaker 2: Okay, very good? Please who where? Okay? Okay, very good.
Speaker 2: Please please show me where the leg injuries are. Turn
Speaker 2: the volume down as much as possible. Okay, okay. Where
Speaker 2: are the shooting in the pelvis or the legs down?
Speaker 1: From the legs down?
Speaker 2: Okay? So I want you to take a shirt or
Speaker 2: a towel and grab a small stick.
Speaker 1: I can't. I don't have I can't what. I can't
Speaker 1: get up?
Speaker 2: I don't have I can't hear you? Can you repeat?
Speaker 1: I can't. I can't lift myself.
Speaker 2: Please crawl. Do you have a closet next to you?
Speaker 1: Yes?
Speaker 2: Adar? Is there a closet next to you that you
Speaker 2: can see?
Speaker 1: I have a closet. How is it relevant? At that
Speaker 1: point the call is ended, the nine one one operator
Speaker 1: text Adar.
Speaker 2: Hidar, it's nine one one. Can you chat with me here? Hadar?
Speaker 2: Please crawl to the closet. We have to save the
Speaker 2: blood he has left from the dar.
Speaker 1: I can't move nine one one?
Speaker 2: Can you pull the sheet under your dad?
Speaker 1: That is the last bit of communication we have between
Speaker 1: nine one one and Hadar. Dana and Carmel died in
Speaker 1: the safe room. Hadar and Avida were rescued many hours later.
Speaker 1: The medical staff were forced to amputate a Vita's leg
Speaker 1: from Avida. I'm spilling. I can hear Carmel telling me, Dad,
Speaker 1: I only want one thing. Bury me with my surfboard.
Speaker 1: Fast forward to October twenty fourth, twenty twenty three. A
Speaker 1: hushed crowd gathers under gray skies. The silence is thick,
Speaker 1: broken only by the soft rustle of wind through eucalyptus
Speaker 1: leaves and the muffled sobs of mourners. Two coffins lie
Speaker 1: side by side, one small, one larger. A Vida Bakar,
Speaker 1: pale and hollowed eyed, arrives in a wheelchair. His leg
Speaker 1: is gone, his world shattered. His daughters Hadar and Nafar
Speaker 1: steady him as he's rolled towards the fresh graves. He
Speaker 1: grips their hands, trying to stay upright. In more ways
Speaker 1: than one. On the smaller coffin rests a surfboard, sun faded,
Speaker 1: wax worn, Carmel's board, The fifteen year old boy who
Speaker 1: at once carved waves with effortless joy, his last wish
Speaker 1: to be buried with it. A rabbi speaks, but the
Speaker 1: words are distant. Friends and strangers step forward, placing roses
Speaker 1: on the caskets. One by one. Petals fall like echoes,
Speaker 1: like memory. This is not just a funeral. It's a
Speaker 1: farewell to innocence, to a mother and son torn from life,
Speaker 1: to a home that one stood peaceful, now a scarred
Speaker 1: monument to grief. When we come back, we'll examine the
Speaker 1: Shosh Family story. Don't Go Anywhere, Part two, The Shosh Family.
Speaker 1: The story of the Shosh family also takes place in
Speaker 1: the Kibbutz of Brie. After the massive rocket launch and
Speaker 1: the arrival of terrorists on foot, Noi, aged thirty seven,
Speaker 1: and his wife Mchole aged thirty five, entered the safe
Speaker 1: room of their house with their three young children, ages two,
Speaker 1: four and six. Amas terrorists enter the house and shoot
Speaker 1: the safe room door in an attempt to break in.
Speaker 1: Nei was shot and critically in while holding the door
Speaker 1: in an attempt to block them. These are the recordings
Speaker 1: of mother and wife McCole during the events that followed
Speaker 1: from the by Mother's group chat on WhatsApp from McCole,
Speaker 1: aged thirty five, mother of three. Someone's in the house.
Speaker 1: They're trying to open No one came to help. They're
Speaker 1: trying to get in. They're messing with the door. I
Speaker 1: don't know what they're doing. I think something is being
Speaker 1: set on fire. We have smoke in the safe room.
Speaker 1: Smoke in the safe room. We have a lot of
Speaker 1: smoke and we can't move. Please if someone can help.
Speaker 1: They're trying to break in again. The safe room door
Speaker 1: is open. We have fire. We're being burned alive. We
Speaker 1: can't breathe here. Next we have McColl's call with nine
Speaker 1: one one. Mcole. I need help. Operator.
Speaker 2: I know. First of all, tell me where you are
Speaker 2: in the mcole.
Speaker 1: How's eighty four?
Speaker 2: Your surname Shosh Shosh? Who got hurt? And when.
Speaker 1: My husband was heard about twenty minutes ago, wounded in
Speaker 1: the gut?
Speaker 2: How old is he?
Speaker 1: Thirty seven? Wounded in the back, wounded in the gut,
Speaker 1: wounded in the hand, Operator.
Speaker 2: I see the only one mcole, a.
Speaker 1: Bad hand wound. I also need. We can't breathe here.
Speaker 2: He's having trouble breathing.
Speaker 1: They're smoking the house. He can't breathe. They set fire here.
Speaker 1: The kids can can't breathe. He can't breathe. I can't breathe.
Speaker 1: I see he's going to pass out. Then NOI speaks
Speaker 1: up for the first time on the call. NOI, we
Speaker 1: need help now.
Speaker 2: I know, I know, I know you need help urgently.
Speaker 1: I know, Mchole. The kids can't breathe.
Speaker 2: The ambulance can't get to you. That's why I want
Speaker 2: you to do what I say.
Speaker 1: The smoke here is so thick. I don't have a signal,
Speaker 1: and I'm out of battery.
Speaker 2: No battery.
Speaker 1: Suddenly the phone went dead. Inside the safe room, the
Speaker 1: air was thick, hot, heavy, choking smoke crept in through
Speaker 1: the cracks, wrapping itself around the family like a noose.
Speaker 1: Mchole was holding the tourniquet tight on her husband. It
Speaker 1: was the only thing keeping NOI alive. He was bleeding out.
Speaker 1: The door was blocked and it was filling with smoke.
Speaker 1: A decision had to be made, a decision that no
Speaker 1: one should ever have to make hold the tourniquet and
Speaker 1: save her husband or let go of the tourniquet and
Speaker 1: open the window so her children wouldn't suffocate. Noi looked
Speaker 1: at her, he knew they said their final goodbyes. McCole
Speaker 1: opened the window and saved her children's lives. Noy's body
Speaker 1: remained behind, still blocking the door to the safe room,
Speaker 1: a final act of protection, a father's last stand. This
Speaker 1: was just one family, one room, one impossible choice. On
Speaker 1: October seventh, We'll take a quick break, don't go anywhere.
Speaker 1: Part three, narite Unavo called Cornfeld. We returned to Kibbutz
Speaker 1: Beairi for our final story. This time we're not entering
Speaker 1: a family home. Were stepping into a small dental clinic, quiet, sterile,
Speaker 1: and on most days, routine. On the morning of October seventh,
Speaker 1: it became something else, entirely, a makeshift hospital and a
Speaker 1: front line of horror. This is the story of Niriit
Speaker 1: whunvaulved Cornfeld. At seven point fifteen am, Nireit, thirty eight
Speaker 1: years old, a Kibbutz nurse, got the call. She was
Speaker 1: supposed to be getting her kids ready. That morning was
Speaker 1: meant to be simple, joyful. A village wide treasure hunt
Speaker 1: followed by kite flying in the open fields. Instead, Niriit
Speaker 1: ran towards the wounded. At one point in time, Nurit
Speaker 1: made the choice to leave behind a traditional religious life
Speaker 1: to be with her part by n Cornfield. They met
Speaker 1: while serving as army conscripts. Bounded by service and later
Speaker 1: by love. Five years ago, they moved to bed Erie
Speaker 1: to build a life together, a quiet one. They had
Speaker 1: four young children, all under ten. They imagined October seventh
Speaker 1: as a day of play, chasing clues and laughing under
Speaker 1: the sun. Instead, it would become a day of blood,
Speaker 1: fire and loss. Nireed would spend the rest of the
Speaker 1: day in that clinic treating the wounded, patching burns, stopping bleeding,
Speaker 1: whispering reassurances between explosions, all while knowing her own family
Speaker 1: was somewhere nearby, hiding, praying. This was the reality inside
Speaker 1: bed Erie, a place of peace transformed in an instant
Speaker 1: into a war zone. The emergency squad held their ground
Speaker 1: for as long as they could. Hood around the clinic,
Speaker 1: they fought to slow the attackers advance, buying precious time
Speaker 1: bullet by bullet. Two volunteers took position at the clinic's entrance.
Speaker 1: Rifles raised. They fired at every gunman who came into view,
Speaker 1: holding the line for hours until their ammunition finally ran out.
Speaker 1: This is ne Reid's testimony. I guess and I arrived
Speaker 1: at the dental clinic area. I see Gil critically injured.
Speaker 1: On his last breath. We just dragged him into the clinic.
Speaker 1: We began to take care of him. A meat and I.
Speaker 1: Another member of the emergency squad walks in injured. I
Speaker 1: was shot shot in the back. A few moments later,
Speaker 1: another one comes in injured. Yeah, Yer came in, blood
Speaker 1: all over him. While I'm caring for him, he went
Speaker 1: into shock several times shaking. At some point he said,
Speaker 1: I'm cold, I'm cold. I can't I'm cold. He really
Speaker 1: went into a state of shock, and I begin to
Speaker 1: feel really bad, like physically to feel bad. I felt
Speaker 1: I was about to pass out. I felt I was
Speaker 1: about to throw up. It was because of the smell
Speaker 1: of blood. I was filled with blood. I went to
Speaker 1: the bathroom and sat on the floor just to try
Speaker 1: to breathe a little and try to make the dizziness
Speaker 1: and nausea go away. All of a sudden, heavy gunfire
Speaker 1: began right outside the clinic and We heard them coming.
Speaker 1: We could really hear the a la akbar and the
Speaker 1: Arabic and the yelling. And then they threw the first
Speaker 1: grenade and then the second, and then they walked into
Speaker 1: the clinic. And I'm still in the bathroom, and I
Speaker 1: can hear them walking on the shattered glass right outside
Speaker 1: the door. And I told myself that's it. I'm now
Speaker 1: going to die. And I just curled up in a
Speaker 1: fetal position on the floor next to the toilet, holding
Speaker 1: my breath. Nurite crouched silently in the bathroom inside the clinic,
Speaker 1: heart pounding, breath shallow, waiting for the inevitable sound of footsteps,
Speaker 1: waiting for the gunman to find her. In another room.
Speaker 1: A metic pleaded for her life. The response was a gunshot.
Speaker 1: She was killed where she stood. Within minutes, three more
Speaker 1: people were dead. The clinic's white walls were shredded with bullets,
Speaker 1: turned into a battlefield. One man survived by crawling beneath
Speaker 1: the sink, covering himself in blood and lying perfectly still,
Speaker 1: playing dead. And somehow the gunman never opened the door
Speaker 1: to the bathroom where Neured was hiding. In a WhatsApp message,
Speaker 1: Neurite types to her wife, I Nat Cornfeld, who is
Speaker 1: saved in her phone as quote my babo In Israeli
Speaker 1: slaying bebo is a playful and affectionate term, often used
Speaker 1: similarly to baby or babe in English. Nereit they're here
Speaker 1: by Nat who the terrorists next to you? Yes, we
Speaker 1: have nowhere to hide. You're a champ. I love you
Speaker 1: more than life itself. Move on. Tell the kids they're
Speaker 1: everything to me. I love them more than anything. Be
Speaker 1: strong and take care of each other. Never stop now.
Speaker 1: Don't say things like that, and don't say goodbye. Hide
Speaker 1: like a coward. We won't live without you. It's important
Speaker 1: for me to know that you'll love on and be happy. NERII,
Speaker 1: I hate you for saying these things. Please stop. You're
Speaker 1: just laying there waiting to be killed for two hours
Speaker 1: and it doesn't end. Then you say to yourself, just
Speaker 1: get it over with and kill me. All I was
Speaker 1: thinking of was the end. What a great life I had,
Speaker 1: How lucky I am. On the one hand, I've lived
Speaker 1: such a great life. Really. I got married, I had kids,
Speaker 1: I lived, I traveled the world, I've seen stuff. But
Speaker 1: on the other hand, I thought about my family. How
Speaker 1: hard it's going to be for them, for my mother.
Speaker 1: How hard it's going to be if I die and
Speaker 1: I'm gone. I told I Nat to just move on,
Speaker 1: to be strong for the kids, to raise them, to
Speaker 1: make sure they won't forget me, won't forget who I was,
Speaker 1: how much their mother loved them. The next series of
Speaker 1: WhatsApp messages were sent two hours after the last ones,
Speaker 1: at two pm. Narite, take care of the kids, everything
Speaker 1: for me, Hi, Nat, You'll raise them and educate them.
Speaker 1: No one is saying goodbye, I love you, sorry for
Speaker 1: leaving you. The next messages were sent at two forty
Speaker 1: six pm, almost one hour later, Narite, allow the kids
Speaker 1: more things, sweets, screen time, friends, let it go, don't
Speaker 1: fight them, live in harmony with ease and fun, Go
Speaker 1: do stuff, spend money. And then the last message, the
Speaker 1: one that Narite sent to anat the following day after
Speaker 1: she was home and finally safe October eighth, twenty twenty three.
Speaker 1: I'm dead inside. I'm so scared of every little noise.
Speaker 1: I can't eat, I can't drink. The smell won't go away.
Speaker 1: I'm so traumatized. Gil Bollam, age fifty five, Aitan Hadad,
Speaker 1: age forty three, doctor Daniel Levy, age thirty four, Amidman
Speaker 1: aged twenty two, and Shakhar Zemak age thirty nine, were
Speaker 1: all murdered inside the dental clinic on October seventh in
Speaker 1: be Ari. Nurit and one of her fellows, Yeah Year,
Speaker 1: were the only ones who survived that day. Nerit and
Speaker 1: her family were rescued from the Kabbutzbri after sixteen hours.
Speaker 1: To see your family alive, after so many hours, after
Speaker 1: all that you've been through, just to hug them and
Speaker 1: breathe them was I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it, Lamande.
Speaker 1: Nearly one in every ten residents of be Ari was
Speaker 1: killed that day, at least ninety seven civilians in total.
Speaker 1: It's a staggering number for any place, but even more
Speaker 1: so in a small, close knit community about the size
Speaker 1: of Greenwich Village in New York City. The gunmen came
Speaker 1: from the west, crossing in from Gaza. That's where they
Speaker 1: first struck, moving with ruthless precision through the neighborhoods closest
Speaker 1: to the border. They didn't just invade, They hunted. They
Speaker 1: torched homes, They dragged people from shelter, They shot residents
Speaker 1: in their beds, on porches beneath trees where they tried
Speaker 1: to hide. Some were taken kidnapped, Others burned alive when
Speaker 1: their houses were set ablaze. Whole families wiped out in
Speaker 1: a matter of minutes. The randomness was as terrifying as
Speaker 1: the brutality. Some who hid behind a bush or in
Speaker 1: a closet survived. Others who followed emergency protocols locking themselves
Speaker 1: in reinforced safe rooms were found dead inside. The victims
Speaker 1: spanned generations. The youngest wasn't a year old yet, and
Speaker 1: the oldest was eighty eight. By the time it was over,
Speaker 1: spouses were gone, parents, children. Nothing about Bay looked or
Speaker 1: felt the same, and for those who survived, nothing would.
Speaker 1: In the aftermath, Even lifelong peace activists began to question
Speaker 1: what they believed, not because they wanted to, but because
Speaker 1: they had to. Because the images of that day, of friends, neighbors,
Speaker 1: children murdered in cold blood don't fade easily. The distinction
Speaker 1: between hamas and everyday gossans became harder to hold. Trust collapsed,
Speaker 1: and grief turned to something heavier. These same Kabbutzniks now
Speaker 1: find themselves stuck in a cruel paradox. They still oppose
Speaker 1: the occupation, they still want peace, But how do you
Speaker 1: believe in peace when peace got you killed? And when
Speaker 1: the government they never voted for net Yah, who's stood
Speaker 1: powerless as their people died. Kablitzim were once the moral
Speaker 1: compass of Israeli society. Today they are a scar tissue
Speaker 1: of a nation still bleeding, not just from rockets and gunfire,
Speaker 1: but from the slow death of a dream. I'm t
Speaker 1: z Borden. I've been your host today. Thank you for
Speaker 1: listening to tapes from the Dark Side. We have a
Speaker 1: host of new Patreon supporters. Thank you to Dan n Shauna,
Speaker 1: Angie Jillette, Aaron Sprague, Garrett Hartoff, Cosmic Serpent, MBB, Cynthia
Speaker 1: dingis Leiah based, Philip Berryhill d Lifeguard, Tated, Marie tim
Speaker 1: Er Waitkus, and Amy Nicole. We have a yearly member
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Speaker 1: for a year. Caitlin Bruce. Thank you to our associate producers,
Speaker 1: Sam and Jade DeMoss. Thank you to our executive producer
Speaker 1: at the Secret Tier, our first person at the thirty
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Speaker 1: of my best work I think is on there. Not
Speaker 1: every episode hits hard, but I think the majority of
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Speaker 1: patreon dot com slash Tapes from the Dark Side. Thank
Speaker 1: you to Augusta Trevororam who created original music that you
Speaker 1: heard in today's episode. Until next time, try to enjoy
Speaker 1: the Daylight.
Speaker 2: A dark Side.
Speaker 1: A Scard