Son of Hostage Describes the Psychological Trauma of Waiting for Mother

The son of Ada Sagi, a 75-year-old hostage, has described the wait for her release as "psychological terror." Noam Sagi, a British-Israeli, spoke to BBC News just before his mother and other hostages were handed over to the Red Cross on Tuesday. He expressed his plans to give her a warm hug and assure her that they never stopped fighting to bring her back. Ada, who is fluent in Arabic, had been teaching others the language to foster communication with their Palestinian neighbors. She was known as a peace activist and was scheduled to visit London for her 75th birthday before being kidnapped. Noam has been vocal about his mother's kidnapping, meeting with UK officials, diplomats, and the Red Cross in an effort to secure her release. Noam shared his mix of emotions upon learning that his mother's name was on the list for release, describing it as a moment of excitement mixed with the painful reality of their lost home and friends. Throughout the ordeal, Noam has remained positive, though waiting to see if Ada's name would be on the release list felt like "Russian roulette to the heart." Ada, a Holocaust survivor's daughter and recent widow, now faces the challenge of recovering from this unimaginable trauma. Despite some tearing down the posters of kidnapped individuals in the UK, Noam found comfort in talking to the lampposts with his mother's pictures. Finally, Noam has been reunited with his mother.