NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: The ongoing Hamas attack on Israel brings distress as civilians, including children and women, are held hostage, causing profound concern.
Amid the ongoing turmoil, ‘Today’ host Savannah Guthrie recently interacted with an Israeli father, Yoni Asher, whose family has been taken hostage by Hamas militants.
On Monday, October 9, Asher, whose wife, two young daughters, and mother-in-law were captured by the militant group, opened up about how he learned of their abduction.
Savannah Guthrie interviews Israeli man Yoni Asher
During a recent ‘Today’ episode, Savannah Guthrie interviewed the Israeli man, Yoni Asher, whose family has been taken hostage by Hamas.
She started by saying, "I’m so sorry for what you are suffering right now. Have you had any updates at all? Any information whatsoever about your family?"
Asher replied, "Since Saturday, I don’t have any new information since I saw the video, in which I recognized my wife and two daughters, two baby girls, less than five and three years old."
He continued, "And earlier, there was a phone conversation with me and my wife. She told me that there were terrorists inside the house. But when I saw the video later after I tracked her phone, there was no doubt in my mind that she was taken, they were taken with my daughters into Gaza by Hamas."
Then, Guthrie asked, "You tracked her phone to Gaza?"
He replied, "Before I saw the video, I tracked her phone using her G-Mail account that was on my laptop, tracking her mobile phone. And it appeared in Gaza."
Guthrie stated, "I cannot even fathom how you must have felt being on the other end of the phone and she was telling you there were terrorists in her house. Where was she? How did this unfold? How did she sound? How did it happen? Where was she? Was she at your home? Was she visiting relatives? How did this happen?"
The man said, "Yeah, she was visiting my mother-in-law, her mother in a little village next to Gaza. We don’t live there, but she went and visited her mother. And I, myself, stayed at home earlier this week."
"She went on Thursday, and I stayed to work. She decided to stay there for one more night, that was Friday and Saturday. So, they caught up to the invasion on Saturday morning," added the distraught father.
Guthrie then asked him if he wanted to send any "message" to his wife and daughters, and Asher responded, "Well, my wife Duran, my daughters Roz, less than five years old, and my little baby girl less than three years old, they are just little babies."
"They are not even girls, you know, it’s babies. And I’m approaching everyone who is willing to hear, it doesn’t matter if it’s the person who are holding them or the National Community of anyone else, the message is these are babies," continued the emotional father.
Asher concluded, "Babies, women, and families are off limits. You can’t just take them and hold them in captivity. I don’t know what conditions are they held in. I don’t know if they are enough, if they’re cold or hot, if they’re hurt, if they’re getting treatment right. You know, it’s a situation you just can’t do these kinds of things. Show some decency, show some respect."
'Today' fans send prayers to the Yoni Asher's family
Soon after Savannah Guthrie's interview of Yoni Asher was posted online, ‘Today’ viewers flocked to send in their prayers for his family's wellbeing.
One stated, "We. Are. Collectively praying for your wife and baby girls to be returned home for your strength during this and for peace and for JUSTICE. Dear god. Hear our prayers 💙🙏🏻☮️☮️🙏🏻💙."
Another said, "This hurts so much. As a mother my heart breaks for the innocent children. Please, please return these children and their mother safely," while a fan noted, "Yoni Asher, I'm so sorry for what your family is going through. We will be praying for God's protection for your wife, daughters, and mother in law and for their safe return."
"Praying to God for this family that they be reunited and for all the people of Israel," expressed another, as one more added, “Praying for their safety and I’m so sorry you and your family are going through this horrific situation."
A viewer simply wrote, “We will pray with you for their safe return!"
