The family of Liam Or, an Israeli teen who was kidnapped on October 7 and released 54 days later, revealed over the weekend that his father is an Arab Israeli – a fact they feared would elicit retribution, both among his captors and in Israel.
In a wide-ranging interview with Yedioth Ahronoth published on Friday, Ramzy Nassar spoke about the October 7 attack, Liam Or Nassar’s kidnapping and the difficult decision he made. Not only did he remove his last name from his son’s identity, he imposed on himself a vow of silence – no television interviews, no social media posts and no other form of publicly campaigning for Liam’s release.
“The thought was that if Hamas would find out, it could hurt Liam,” Ramzy said, explaining the decision-making process. “It’s not something that the other side would take well, that [Liam’s] father is a Muslim who’s married to a Jewish woman, even though Islam doesn’t forbid it. The kid could be considered a traitor, a son of a traitor,” he said.
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Liam was 18 years old when he was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Re’im’s youth neighborhood – just a few dozen meters from the home where Ramzy, Dana Or and their two other kids were sheltering in their safe room.
“I called Liam and woke him up,” Ramzy recalled. After reading on the kibbutz’s Whatsapp group that there were reports of terrorists who had infiltrated the area, Ramzy tried to reach Liam again.
“The phone was busy, he was talking to his girlfriend. We texted and he said that he can hear people outside, people walking, yelling and sounds of gunfire,” Ramzy said. “I told him about the reports of terrorist infiltration and asked him to stay in the safe room. He responded, “Dad, I’m scared.'”
The moment Ramzy learned of his son’s fate came when Liam’s girlfriend called him with tears in her voice. “She told me that a kid from their grade sent her a picture of Liam. She was in shock, she couldn’t send it to me herself. I called that kid and asked for the picture,” he recalled.
After being sent the picture, Ramzy describes a contradictory feeling of understanding what had happened, but refusing to accept it. “I looked at the picture, [and there was] Liam wearing only his boxers, tied up in a tunnel. One part of my mind said, ‘That’s Liam, that’s your son.’ The other part says, ‘That’s fake, it’s impossible.’ But my heart told me, Ramzy, you know that’s your son,” he said.
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‘The Or family secret’: The interview with Ramzy in Yedioth Ahronoth. Credit: Yedioth Ahronoth
‘The Or family secret’: The interview with Ramzy in Yedioth Ahronoth.Credit: Yedioth Ahronoth
Hours later, the decision to remove the name Nassar from Liam’s identity was made. Ramzy says it wasn’t an easy decision, but he understood that it would be better if the public – mostly Hamas – didn’t know the truth.
“It hurt, it really did,” Ramzy said of the decision. “It was really sad that I was forced to be silent because of my identity, my background, in the country that I live in, out of fear that it would be used to harm my son, there in Gaza or here [in Israel]. It made me question the reality I’m living in,” he added.
Ultimately, Liam was released on November 29, 2023, during the first cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, alongside 11 women, teens and children. “It’s hard to describe the feelings on the day of his release,” Ramzy recalls, explaining that the day itself was “extremely long.”
“I waited for a picture [of Liam], something concrete,” Ramzy says of the anticipation during the day his son was released. “I remember seeing a picture of him on a minibus, nodding at a soldier that was there … nothing compares to that,” he added.
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Liam Or and his father in an IDF helicopter upon his release from Gaza captivity.
Liam Or and his father in an IDF helicopter upon his release from Gaza captivity.
“When we finally met, I ran to him and he ran to me, and we hugged. The first thing he said to me was, ‘I’m okay, Dad, I’m okay,'” Ramzy says, saying that was the moment he “finally could breathe again.”
After Liam was taken to a hospital, he received an ID card and was surprised to learn that his last name had been shortened. “We created a precedent in the State of Israel, changing an adult’s name without him being present,” Ramzy said. “I explained to [Liam] why we did what we did, and he understood but still asked to change the name back. It was already fixed that day,” he says.
Ramzy disclosed that Liam returned to Kibbutz Re’im following his release from Gaza. “There’s a huge difference between the kid that was kidnapped and the guy that returned from captivity. They’re not the same person. There are some qualities that protected him and allowed him to survive, but there has been a change in him that’s expected and understood,” he says.