The sister-in-law of Underbelly star Dan Mor has broken her silence after being held hostage by Hamas terrorists for 54 days, where she feared she would be “raped and murdered”.
Moran Stella Yanai was kidnapped by the terrorist group as part of the horrific October 7 attacks that saw 1,200 Israelis killed and another 250 kidnapped and taken back to Gaza.
The Israeli jewelry designer was among the helpless revelers who attended the doomed Nova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im, where Palestinian gunmen – some on paragliders – murdered 364 civilians.
Ms. Yanai had set up a retail booth just days before the rave and spent her time assembling and designing the jewelry.
When the attack unfolded, she frantically tried to flee across the desert where the festival was being held, near Mount Negev, but broke her leg in the chaos.
Moran Stella Yanai (photo) has broken her silence after spending 54 days held hostage by Hamas following the October 7 attacks in Israel.
Her brother-in-law, Dan Mor, who starred in the award-winning Australian crime drama series Underbelly: The Golden Mile, previously revealed the family spoke to him on the phone as she tried to flee the carnage.
They then discovered a clip posted to an anonymous TikTok account, showing Ms Yanai begging for her life as Hamas terrorists screamed in the background.
Eventually, her worst fears were realized when a dozen terrorists pulled her out from under a tree where she was hiding.
Ms. Yanai was then bundled into a jeep and taken to Gaza where she feared she would be “lynched.”
“You keep thinking every minute that now they are going to kill you, now you are going to be raped,” Ms. Yanai told the Sun Herald.
The brave woman, who is the first October 7 hostage to travel to Australia, said she she is still processing the ordeal and feels like it is still there.
Ms. Yanai was transferred to seven heavily guarded locations upon her capture, where she was monitored day and night, given very little food and water, and had to ask permission to use the toilet.
A viral TikTok video showed Ms Yanai pleading for her life (pictured) after being found by Hamas terrorists in a tree, before being taken away in a jeep by the terrorists in Gaza.
The Israeli jewelry designer was among the helpless revelers who attended the doomed Supernova music festival (pictured) near Kibbutz Re’im, where Palestinian gunmen – some on paragliders – murdered 364 civilians.
She described the first place she was held as a “living room” that also housed another hostage, a traumatized 18-year-old girl who lost friends and family in the October 7 attacks.
The two men only dared to whisper to each other because the terrorists said they would kill them if they spoke.
One day, at another location, Ms. Yanai was playing a card game with another hostage when a terrorist threatened to “put a bullet in my head.”
“I was just thinking: Will it end like this so that I’m like an object on the floor?” » said Ms. Yanai.
While being transferred from one safe house to another, Ms Yanai was disguised as a grandmother so residents would not be suspicious.
She said she managed to survive the horrific ordeal by refusing to give in to fear and thinking of her loved ones.
“It’s the moment you imagine every day in captivity, it’s the only thing that helps you survive,” she said.
Dan Mor (pictured), Ms Yanai’s brother-in-law, previously revealed the family’s desperate attempts to contact the jewelry designer during the carnage.
Ms Yanai (pictured), said she kept thinking about her loved ones during her time in captivity, which she said helped her survive the horrific ordeal.
Ms. Yanai was released 54 days after being taken hostage with eight others.
But more than 134 hostages are still held by Hamas in Gaza.
Since the October 7 attacks, Israel has declared war on Hamas and launched a series of airstrikes and ground offensives in Gaza.
It is estimated that around 30,000 Palestinians have been killed as the war continues to rage.