A home destroyed in Kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel during Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack that is featured in the film Kibbutz Nir Oz by “Uvda.” Photo: Screenshot
A Philippines-born caregiver, who was abducted in Kibbutz Nir Oz by Hamas-led terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023, and has since returned home, named his newborn daughter in tribute of Israel, it was announced this week.
Gelienor “Jimmy” Leano Pacheco, 34, had been caring for 80-year-old Amitai Ben Zvi at Kibbutz Nir Oz for four years when Hamas terrorists went on a deadly rampage across southern Israel. The two hid together in a safe room before terrorists murdered Ben Zvi and took Pacheco as a hostage back to the Gaza Strip, where he was held in captivity until he was released in November 2023 in a hostage deal. He now lives in the Philippines with his family.
Pacheco recently celebrated the birth of his fourth child, whom he named Israela. “One reason is [because] I love Israel,” he explained to i24News about how he decided on his daughter’s name. “I’m still here in the Philippines [but] every time I call my daughter Israela, I feel I live also in Israel … When my daughter Israela is one year old, maybe I can take her [to] Israel for a vacation.”
He added that he has shared photos of the baby with members of the Ben Zvi family, who he is still close with. “They treat me like family,” he shared. He also said he has a store in the Philippines named after his late employer who was murdered by Hamas.
Pacheco’s decision to name his daughter Israela is “a powerful gesture of love and solidarity,” the Consulate General of Israel in New York said in a Facebook post on Thursday.
Pacheco was released from Hamas captivity alongside 10 other Thai nationals, and members of the Ben Tzvi family visited him at the Shamir Medical Center when he returned to Israel. Pacheco later shared that he was held captive in a Hamas tunnel in the Gaza Strip with fellow hostages Yarden Bibas and Ofer Kalderon.
“During two weeks, I remained in a cramped room with Yarden and Ofer,” he recalled, according to Israel Hayom. “An extraordinary bond developed among us. When I wept, they comforted me and assured me that the Israeli government provides assistance. We sang together, shared laughter, and I even taught Yarden the Filipino language.”
“Yarden is like a brother and Ofer is like a brother,” Pacheco told i24News.
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Author: Shiryn Ghermezian
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