Keith Siegel, a Chapel Hill native, has recently depicted the harrowing details of his 484-day-long captivity under Hamas, following his release on Feb. 1 as part of a ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel. A video, made public yesterday, captures Siegel's first statements since regaining freedom, where he claims to have been "starved and tortured both physically and emotionally," according to information obtained by WRAL.
Lucy Siegel, Keith's sister, flew to Israel to meet him, retelling the moments leading up to their reunion in a testimony shared with CBS17, her mind filled with "all positive thoughts" as she refused to let concern or anxiety dominate her experience, even as her anticipation to see her brother again after such an ordeal grew.
Keith Siegel, 65, was one of two hostages released in early February, endured nearly 500 days of captivity where he described his treatment as being held "with no water, no light and no air to breathe," narrative he shared in a somber account reported by WRAL. Alongside expressing the stark reality of his circumstances, Siegel did not withhold gratitude, accrediting President Donald Trump for playing a decisive role in his release, a sentiment echoed in social media posts and his personal reflections.
Before his abduction on October 7, 2023, in a violent attack by Hamas that saw more than 1,000 casualties, Siegel and his wife, Aviva, had made a life for themselves in Israel, having moved there from North Carolina when Siegel was a young man, a past life punctuated by "country music and pancakes on Saturday morning," he revealed on WRAL in stark contrast to the life-altering experience of his captivity, details of which he divulged by sharing his poignant survival story, as he told it to an Instagram audience on the page Bring Them Home Now.
