Idit Ohel: I haven't heard from or seen Alon for half a year, Serbia is helping him return

"It's been half a year since I've heard from or seen my son, which is very difficult for any mother," says Idit Ohel to Kosovo Online, the mother of Alon Ohel, a Serbian citizen kidnapped six months ago, on October 7 last year, in a Hamas terrorist attack on Israel.

"Half a year, exactly 184 days, has passed since we have had any information about our Alon. It's not easy. I don't have information about where he is or how he is. I know he was kidnapped alive. I'm his mother, and I feel that he is okay. But, I have no official information about where he is and how he is," she shares.

Yet, she is an optimistic person and wakes up every morning hoping that everything will be fine and that her son will return.

"We're trying everything, to talk about Alon, as well as other hostages, to keep them in the media spotlight. What I'm doing gives me hope," she adds.

Today, she is going to Jerusalem, where a gathering will be held, including previously released hostages. In her address, she says, she will call for unity, for everyone to continue helping each other, and for the government to do everything to bring Alon back.

"I haven't seen, heard, or hugged my son for half a year. What mother wouldn't understand how I feel... This is something human beings shouldn't do to each other," she doesn't hide her emotions and continues:

"Alon had a yellow piano when he was in Belgrade. A man from Belgrade told me something I want to share with everyone, which is - you are not alone. Not only are the hostages not alone, but we as people are not alone. The fact is that we are not alone in this world, which means you can't be blind to what's happening somewhere else. This could have happened to anyone in the world. Evil is everywhere. It happened in Israel on October 7th, but it could have been anywhere. As human beings, we must look out for each other and help one another. And Alon's yellow piano is light, the sun, and shows that we must be there for each other," she points out.

She said that Israel and Serbia are trying through negotiations to find countries that have good relations with Qatar and Egypt to find a way to reach an agreement to stop the war and release the hostages.

As for Serbia, she says the country is doing everything to help and bring Alon back.

"I think that the Serbian government, especially President Aleksandar Vucic, have done a lot and I want them to continue searching for a way to bring him back. We thank them for that," Idit Ohel conveyed.

Pointing out that Orthodox Christians will soon be celebrating Easter and Jews Passover, she says it's a time when hostages should be released.

"I want all this to end. I am a mother who wants her son to return. As I've heard from released hostages, they are there without food, light, and are forced to sit all day... It's very difficult to be in Gaza right now," she added.

She says she often feels like screaming to the whole world "enough already," that innocent civilians were kidnapped from Israeli land, and that the world must stop this and return these innocent people to their homes, to their families.

"Every day I look at Alon's picture and say that I'm doing everything to bring him back and I'm sorry that this happened to him. My family is experiencing this for the second time. My ancestors lived in Europe, in Yugoslavia, from where they had to flee during World War II. This is the second time something like this has happened to someone in our family just because they are Jewish," said Idit Ohel.