On the eve of the second anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, terror raid, Orna and Ronen Neutra sat down with Newsmax on Monday to talk about their son, Capt. Omer Neutra, the Israeli-American tank officer who was killed on Oct. 7 while serving in the Israel Defense Forces.
"It's hard to breathe, you know. We've been in this terrorist attack since Oct. 7. For us, it's one big blur," Orna Neutra told "National Report." "We wake up in the morning, we write the number on our chest; that kind of keeps us grounded. … We really hope that we're closer to the finish line than we ever were before."
The IDF announced last December that Omer Neutra was killed in action on Oct. 7 and that Hamas removed his body to Gaza, where it remains.
The Neutras recounted the limbo of living without full closure.
"We are up in the air, we are in limbo land, we are in a different universe," Ronen Neutra said. "And we got to get our closure. We got to get our son back. And all the 48 families are just sitting extremely worried, extremely under pressure right now, hoping that President [Donald] Trump's initiative is going to materialize in the next few days."
Trump last week outlined a 20-point peace plan that Hamas conditionally agreed to on Friday. Trump is calling for the release of all the hostages, dead and alive.
Diplomatic pressure has raised hopes for a broader hostage-release framework that Israeli officials and some families say could bring captives home.
Coverage of the White House-backed peace plan notes it has elicited cautious optimism and political pushback in Jerusalem.
Omer Neutra, a Plainview, New York, native who chose to serve as a soldier in the IDF, "felt that he couldn't just go back to college without doing his share in protecting the Jewish state," Orna Neutra said.
She described a family history marked by survival and service: "He has grandparents that are Holocaust survivors. He grew up on the ethos that Israel needs to be able to protect itself, and he just heard the calling and felt that he had to do that, and he had to do his share."
Back home on Long Island, communities have honored Omer Neutra's memory in recent weeks, including a park dedication that drew family, friends, and local officials — a reminder of the young man's ties to both America and Israel.
The Neutras voiced grief, demanded answers, and pressed for action to bring any remaining captives and remains back to Israel.
"We hope to see the deal coming through in the next few days," Ronen Neutra said. "We are hoping that this tipping point is, we're on the verge of it."
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Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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