Former Hostage Omer Shem Tov Tells TPUSA That Perek in Tehillim Sustained Him In Captivity

Former Hamas hostage Omer Shem Tov, who spent 505 days in captivity after being abducted from the Supernova music festival during the October 7 massacre, shared his story Motzoei Shabbos at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest conference, describing how emunah helped him endure the horrors of captivity in Gaza.

Recounting the moment of his abduction, Shem Tov said, “One moment I was dancing with my friends and the next I was at the back of a pickup truck being dragged into Gaza. I spent 505 days underground in terror tunnels. There was no fresh air, no sunlight, no sense of time. Just darkness, pitch black 24 hours a day. I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face. At one point, I thought that I had gone blind.”

He described the severe physical and emotional deprivation he faced while being held alone for more than a year. “The hunger was constant. I was weak, dehydrated, and starving. Many days all I had was a single cracker and few drops of salty water. But the hardest part was the loneliness. Some hostages were held together. I wasn’t. For more than a year, I did not see another hostage. No voices, no faces, no human connection. Just silence, darkness, and fear.”

Shem Tov said that it was during this isolation that he turned to faith for the first time. “Before my captivity, I had never really spoken to G-d before. But alone in that darkness, I began to pray. Every day, I spoke to him. I whispered, ‘God, how are you? How was your day? Are you okay?’ And in that darkness, I felt His presence. I thanked Him for everything. For the food even though there was almost none. For the water even when it was salty. For my life even though it was in danger every single day.”

Although he was not rescued directly by Israeli forces, Shem Tov recalled hearing the IDF operating overhead during his captivity. “About 100 days into my captivity, the IDF fought just above me. And when they moved on, they left behind books. My captors brought them to me.”

Among those items, he found a small card with Tehillim Perek 20, including the pasuk “eileh b’rechev v’eileh basusim,” that became a lifeline. “I found a small card with Psalm 20 – ‘Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will trust in the name of the Lord our G-d.’ I didn’t know it then, but while I was whispering those words in Gaza, my mother was reciting the same psalm in my bedroom in Israel, praying for my return. The psalm continues, ‘Lord, answer us when we call.’ G-d answered us. In those tunnels, I found G-d and He saved me.”

Shem Tov told the audience that his experience reflected a broader global struggle against terrorism. “What I experienced is not just my story. It is a part of a much larger fight. We have seen these same radical terrorists commit violence in Israel, in Europe, not long ago, just last week in Australia and even here in the United States, including the attack in Washington DC where two national guardsmen were shot. This is the evil we’re fighting. This is not a distant conflict. These are terrorists who attack freedom wherever freedom is undefended.”

He also cited a statement attributed to Turning Point founder Charlie Kirk, saying, “Charlie Kirk of blessed memory once said, ‘Israel is a civilized country. Hamas are savage animals.’ Take it from someone who spent 505 days as their hostage. He was right. They are savage animals.”

Shem Tov concluded by expressing gratitude to President Donald Trump, crediting him with helping secure the release of the hostages. “I can tell you something else about the terrorists who held me captive. There was one man they feared the most: President Donald Trump. When he was elected, the way they treated me changed completely. They were terrified of him. And I want to state this clearly so the whole world hears it now. On behalf of the hostages, our families, and our nation, thank you, President Donald Trump, for our freedom. He fought for us. He brought us home. When he met us at the White House, he promised to bring home the remaining hostages, living and dead, in one deal. And he kept that promise. I told him he was sent by God and I thank him.”

In closing, Shem Tov thanked those who supported the hostages and framed the struggle in moral terms. “Thank you to everyone who prayed for us, who stood for truth because this fight is between good and evil. A fight against terrorists who turn hospitals into torture chambers, schools into military bases, who murder young people at a music festival, who kill Jews because they’re Jewish, and Christians because they’re Christians. This evil is spreading. But when I stand here with you today, I feel strong because we’re united. We are free and together we will defeat evil. I stand here not as a victim but as a witness. A witness to what faith can build, to what resilience can sustain, to what happens when a person and a nation refuse to surrender.”