Whatever it takes

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: looking out for a younger brother.

This is a story with details that may not be appropriate for children, so you may want to skip ahead about 6 minutes.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Negotiators within the Biden administration are still trying to secure release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas.

Earlier this week, the terror group published a list of 34 hostages it says it’s willing to release, if a deal can be reached. One of those names is Or Levy.

REICHARD: WORLD Reporter Travis Kircher spoke with Or’s older brother, Michael, about his abduction, and about Michael’s own efforts to bring his brother home.

TRAVIS KIRCHER: Michael Levy is the oldest of three brothers. As they grew up, Michael admits, his parents had their hands full.

LEVY: So as you can imagine, there was a lot of mess at my parents' house. We always broke pretty much everything. We used to play every kind of ballgame you can imagine in the living room when our parents weren't around …

Michael says he’s always felt a sense of responsibility for his youngest brother, Or.

LEVY: I knew I am the big brother. I also felt I have a mission, or I have a job to do, which is protecting him.

A second mission has been to watch out for Or’s happiness. That’s why he says he’s glad Or met someone like Eynav. The two became friends when Or was 18 and Eynav was 17. Michael says both he and his mother knew immediately there was something special between the two…but Or insisted going out with her would be like dating his sister. But Michael was right.

SOUND: [WEDDING ACTIVITY]

Audio here from Or and Eynav’s wedding in August of 2018. Michael says, Eynav—a dancer—was the perfect match for his brother. She was happy. And always smiling.

LEVY: She was one of those just good people—people you want to be around. People you know that will help you if you need anything.

Three years later, Or and Eynav had a son…Almog.

SOUND: [MENORAH LIGHTING]

A video shot by Eynav in their home, shows the three of them singing—well, Almog is trying to sing—as they light the last menorah candle during Hanukkah.

LEVY: They were never apart. They loved the same things. They loved traveling and music and music festivals.

Which is why on October 7th, 2023, Or and Eynav drove to the Supernova music festival outside of Gaza. They arrived just nine minutes before the Hamas attacks began.

LEVY: Or texted my mother when the missile attack started at 6:29, he told her that they are heading back...and about 20 minutes after, he texted her again and told that they are hiding in a bomb shelter.

Michael has since been to that bomb shelter. It’s above ground. He describes it as a concrete bus stop without a door that can fit three people in a tight squeeze. But Michael says 29 people tried to seek shelter in and around it that day—including Or and Elnav. Or phoned his mother again.

LEVY: He was completely terrified. He just kept repeating the sentence, "Mom, you don't want to know what's going on here."

Hamas terrorists attacked the shelter with grenades and gunfire. Michael says they threw nine grenades inside. A brave man was able to throw eight of them out…but it was to no avail. Terrorists quickly overran the shelter.

LEVY: They killed 18 out of the 29 that were inside, including Eynav. Or had to watch Eynav being killed in front of him.

SOUND: [TERRORIST VIDEO]

A graphic video taken by the terrorists shows Or, covered in his wife’s blood, loaded onto the back of a pickup truck with fellow hostages Eliya Cohen and Hersh Goldberg. All of them are injured. Goldberg is missing part of his arm. The terrorists are seen shouting to each other and cheering as they drive the hostages into Gaza.

LEVY: I have another video of him begging them not to take him. But that's it.

Michael hasn’t seen his little brother since.

LEVY: The assumption of the Army—of the IDF—is that he's still alive. So I choose to trust them, because that's what keeps me going.

Since his little brother’s abduction, Michael says his life has been turned upside down. He doesn’t work anymore. He doesn’t go out or be with friends. His sole purpose is to bring his brother home.

Just over two weeks ago, Michael remotely addressed the United Nations Security Council. He was the first hostage family member invited to speak to the council since just after the October 7th massacre took place.

LEVY: Your silence is deafening. Your inaction is suffocating. For every day this council fails to act, the message to the world is clear: that some lives are worth saving, and others are not.

Michael Levy, on screen, addresses a Security Council meeting at United Nations headquarters, Dec. 18, 2024. Associated Press / Photo by Seth Wenig

Michael doesn’t think he changed many minds, but he says it was worth it.

LEVY: I wanted them to look at me and to hear my voice and to hear the pain and to hear what It's like to have your brother held by those monsters…and I wanted them to remind them that that's their job.

But amidst the anguish, Michael sees a ray of hope. Shortly after winning the election, President-elect Donald Trump issued a threat to Hamas: release the hostages before his inauguration day, or face severe consequences. It’s a threat Trump reiterated on Tuesday.

TRUMP: And it will not be good for Hamas, and it will not be good—frankly—for anyone. All hell will break out. I don’t have to say any more, but that’s what it is.

LEVY: He doesn't play around, he doesn't joke when he said those things. For the first time in 15 months, I actually feel that I have hope. I have hope that someone will make Hamas release the hostages.

SOUND: [MENORAH LIGHTING]

Hope that 3-year-old Almogwho has already lost one parent, will be reunited with another.

Shortly after we spoke with Michael earlier this week, Hamas released a list of 34 hostages it says it would be willing to release if a ceasefire deal is reached. Or’s name is on that list.

LEVY: I'll do everything to bring him back. I will not rest. I will not stop until Or and the rest of the hostages are back.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Travis Kircher.

REICHARD:  And another name on that list is Keith Siegel. Listeners of the program may recall that we spoke with his wife, Aviva Siegel, just a few weeks ago. We’ll be praying that both Or and Keith—and all of the hostages—are released soon.

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