Freed captive moves crowd at Hostages Square

After 775 days in Hamas captivity, hostage survivor Alon Ohel returned to Hostages Square in Tel Aviv on Tuesday to perform the song that sustained him during his darkest hours—the piece he played on his bedroom piano before attending the Nova Music Festival in October 2023.

Ohel, a gifted pianist who returned from captivity on October 13, wrote the words, “Song Without a Name,” on an erasable board while on the helicopter from Gaza to the hospital in Israel.

Written and composed by Shalom Hanoch and originally performed by Yehudit Ravitz, it was the last song he played in his room before leaving for the Nova festival.

Prior to Ohel’s release, medical authorities sounded the alarm that intelligence from released hostages suggested he might be losing his vision.

According to information disclosed on Kan Reshet B, reports from freed captives indicated Ohel had sustained shrapnel injuries to his eye and could only detect shadows with one eye. Medical sources said that based on survivor testimonies, he risked losing vision in both eyes.

After his return, and upon medical evaluation, it was confirmed that his right-eye sight had been severely compromised.

He underwent several complex procedures and doctors have been optimistic that his condition would allow his vision to be partially restored despite the circumstances, explaining that the surgery would have normally been done immediately after such an injury to be effective and that his conditions in captivity without proper food and sunlight may have hurt his medical parameters.

Originally published in Israel Hayom.