Arie Zalmanowicz, one of the founders of Kibbutz Nir Oz, was taken from his home on the morning of the October 7 massacre in 2023 by Hamas terrorists rampaging through the kibbutz.
According to testimonies by relatives, Arie was hiding in a safe room on October 7 when he was found by the attackers. He was taken into the Gaza Strip without his glasses or hearing aid.
“Great sorrow, mixed with a sense of relief,” Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav shared after Zalmanowicz’s remains were identified, describing him as a “tough and modest man” who faced “countless incidents of warfare and terrorism on his doorstep without ever breaking,” loving and cultivating Israel his entire life.
“Arie was a quiet Israeli hero in life, and he remains an Israeli hero after his death,” Yahav continued. “I hope we will prove ourselves worthy of him and of all those who have fallen and been murdered.”
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett also mourned Zalmanowicz in a Wednesday post to X/Twitter. “This is not how his life, full of action and giving, should have ended,” Bennett wrote. “In the name of the State of Israel, forgive us, Arie.”
Zalamanowicz wounded, bloodied as he is taken on a motorcycle through Gaza
Footage of his capture, first shared by N12, showed the 86-year-old on the back of a motorcycle, flanked by his captors seated in front and behind him.
In the video, as the group moved through the streets, dozens of people attempted to get closer to the motorcycle. Some struck Zalmanowicz, and he suffered a visible head wound with his clothing covered in bloodstains. A tractor with an Israeli license plate was seen leading the procession.
According to accounts shared by N12 from hostages who were later released, Arie faced severe difficulties while held in Gaza. Hamas published a video in November 2023 showing him in critical condition. In the video, he was seen lying on a bed connected to a monitor and expressed that he wasn’t feeling well.
In later footage, he was seen motionless and wrapped in a white sheet. On December 1, 2023, Nir Oz shared that the family was informed by the IDF that Arie was murdered by his Hamas captors, who continued to hold his remains in Gaza for over two years.
A widower, father of two, and grandfather of five, Arie was born in Haifa before moving to the Gaza border and working in agriculture at Nir Oz. Prior to his abduction, he was active and independent and regularly socialized with younger farmers.