Current:Home > StocksGrandson recounts seeing graphic video of beloved grandmother killed by Hamas -OceanicInvest
Grandson recounts seeing graphic video of beloved grandmother killed by Hamas
TrendPulse View
Date:2025-04-09 17:09:18
Yoav Shimoni opened up to ABC News about the traumatic moment he saw a graphic video of his beloved grandmother lying on the floor of her home dying, surrounded by Hamas terrorists who posted her final moments on her Facebook for her family to see.
Just 10 minutes before militants broke into Bracha Levinson's home on Saturday at Israel's Nir Oz kibbutz, Levinson was texting her daughters, "concerned about them more than she was herself," said Shimoni, 24, who lives in Canada.
But then Shimoni's sister frantically messaged the family text group asking if they had seen their grandmother's Facebook post.
"Immediately, I went to her Facebook page. And I saw a video with her lying on her living room floor with her arms clenched on her chest, covered in blood, and blood surrounding her. A few men with guns standing above her and shouting," Shimoni said.
MORE: Timeline: A look into the long history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
"We all saw the video. Even my little brother," he said.
"I was freaking out, trying to make sense of what's happening. Just, like, pacing around my condo," he said. "I'm trying to call my parents, and hearing my mom screaming her lungs out to the phone when my dad is trying to, like, calm me down and try to explain to me what is happening."
The 24-year-old was in shock, he said, and also scared for the rest of his family who live in Israel.
As the day went on, Shimoni said, the family learned that not only did the militants take Levinson's and post "her dying body for us to see, but they also burned down her house and the entire community which my mom grew up in, I spent most of my summers in."
MORE: How to cope with photos, videos coming out of Israel-Hamas conflict, experts reveal
Levinson, 74, lived in Israel since she was a child after the Holocaust. She raised her children as a single mother in the Nir Oz kibbutz, where she lived the rest of her life. She was known in the community for the bicycle she always rode around as her main transportation.
"She was truly the pillar of our family, and a pillar in her community," her grandson said.
Shimoni last saw his grandmother at her home two weeks ago for the Jewish high holidays. Levinson always felt safest at her home, he said.
"There was no sense of any danger there," he noted. "Coming from the outside to that region, always you feel a bit tense, but it's always the thought of like 'OK, if there's a missile or something, then go to the shelter and we'll be safe.' Which, unfortunately on Saturday, that wasn't the case."
MORE: What is Hamas? The militant group behind surprise attack on Israel has ruled Gaza for years
Shimoni said he wants his grandmother to be remembered for her love of her family and her kibbutz.
He said he's comforted knowing his grandmother didn't have to witness "her community being torn apart."
And Shimoni said his heart breaks for everyone whose loved ones were taken hostage.
"At least I know that my grandmother is not suffering anymore," he said. "I imagine the pain that the neighbors, my mom's colleagues, and my family's friends, and all my friends are experiencing right now, with the unknowing of what happens with their loved ones that are in Gaza."
veryGood! (146)
Related
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- Boston Mayor Michelle Wu pledges to make it easier for homeowners to create accessory housing units
- Armed attack during live broadcast at Ecuadorian TV station. What’s behind the spiraling violence?
- 'Baywatch' star Nicole Eggert reveals breast cancer diagnosis: 'Something I have to beat'
- A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
- Republicans are taking the first step toward holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress
- Apple is sending out payments to iPhone owners impacted by batterygate. Here's what they are getting.
- SEC chair denies a bitcoin ETF has been approved, says account on X was hacked
- At site of suspected mass killings, Syrians recall horrors, hope for answers
- Trump plans to deliver a closing argument at his civil fraud trial, AP sources say
Ranking
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- What 'Good Grief' teaches us about loss beyond death
- 'Holding our breath': Philadelphia officials respond to measles outbreak from day care
- Pope Francis blasts surrogacy as deplorable practice that turns a child into an object of trafficking
- Taylor Swift makes surprise visit to Kansas City children’s hospital
- Former UK opposition leader Corbyn to join South Africa’s delegation accusing Israel of genocide
- Mahomes, Stafford, Flacco: Who are the best QBs in this playoff field? Ranking all 14
- Aaron Rodgers responds to Jimmy Kimmel after pushback on Jeffrey Epstein comment
Recommendation
California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was hospitalized for infection related to surgery for prostate cancer, Pentagon says
Video appears to show the Israeli army shot 3 Palestinians, killing 1, without provocation
RFK Jr. backs out of his own birthday fundraiser gala after Martin Sheen, Mike Tyson said they're not attending
Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
Walmart experiments with AI to enhance customers’ shopping experiences
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds focuses on education, health care in annual address
Boy George reveals he's on Mounjaro for weight loss in new memoir: 'Isn't everyone?'