Kan 7.10.360 | Katzir family from kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7

David Kachko leaves his home for a day trip in the desert with his jeep, as he frequently did on Saturdays.

The unusual rocket barrage begins just as Kachko reaches the intersection near the kibbutz. Ayelet runs to their safe room. Kachko calls her. She asks him to hide in a shelter, but he insists on returning home. This was their last conversation.

Terrorists infiltrate the kibbutz and shoot Kachko at point-blank range while he is still inside his jeep. At the same time, Ayelet hears gunfire and shooting along with Arabic language being spoken outside the window of her safe room. Minutes later, messages began to circulate on the Kibbutz's WhatsApp groups about terrorist infiltrations.

Ayelet hears that terrorists have entered her house, shouting and firing heavy gunfire. She decides to hide in a closet in the safe room. The terrorists shoot and launch payloads, creating great havoc inside her home. She says goodbye to her son Yanai over a few messages: “I had a beautiful life... I'm not afraid to die, but I don't want to be a hostage.” The terrorists do not locate the safe room, which is in a relatively hidden location. Approximately 10 minutes later, they leave the house.

Ayelet realizes that terrorists have captured the kibbutz and that she may stay for long hours until IDF arrives. She exits the safe room to bring a bottle of water, food, candles and a pot for a makeshift lavatory. She films the destruction in the house and realizes that the broken furniture hid the safe room door and concealed it. When she returns to the safe room and leverages her skills as a psychotherapist to meditate and maintain focus and concentration constantly. She reads a book in the dark, safe room using a flashlight as part of these actions. While outside, the sounds of gunfire cries for help, and screams of terrorists are continuously audible.

Ayelet's mobile phone battery runs out. Soon after, she hears that terrorists have again entered her house. They shoot, scream, destroy things in the house and leave. A few hours later another group of terrorists enters. In those hours, she continues with long meditation and mental exercises such as recalling paintings and images she saw in exhibitions in museums.

After more than 24 hours in the safe room, Ayelet hears the rustle of a walkie-talkie and opens a narrow slit in the steel window, through which she notices five IDF soldiers. One of the soldiers shouted, “Is there anyone alive here? “. Fearing that these are terrorists posing as soldiers, as they have done many times, Ayelet is afraid to answer. The soldier calls more times, and they continue on their way without hearing any sound. Ayelet sees that the soldiers are moving away and, with great apprehension, decides to take the risk and calls them: “I am here! “. They ask her not to move from her place and make their way to her

The soldiers tell Ayelet that a booby trap left by the terrorists is trying to be defused. Minutes later, they arrive at the door of the safe room, surround Ayelet, and extract her, protecting her with their bodies. As they walk past the porch, she notices a large black bag that had been placed there. She tells the soldiers that the bag doesn't belong to her. An RPG launcher and other weapons are revealed inside the bag, left there by the terrorists.

The soldiers escort Ayelet to the evacuation point from the kibbutz. She updates her son that she is boarding the bus to safety. She tries to reassure him: “I'm fine, a little shocked”.