“I Counted Every Day”: Former Nova Festival Hostage Bar Kupershtein Recalls 738 Days in Gaza Captivity

Bar Kupershtein, a 23-year-old security guard abducted at the Nova Festival on October 7, 2023, spent 738 days in captivity in Gaza. He speaks of surviving severe abuse, starvation and the uncertainty of underground detention by keeping track of each day, relying on faith and clinging to rare connections with the outside world.

Holding On: Counting, Faith and a Hidden Radio

“In your head, you count every day — that’s how you keep yourself busy,” Kupershtein says. Blindfolded and forbidden to speak for long stretches, counting became one of the few anchors he had as days stretched into months and then years.

“God gave me the strength to be strong. I truly believed and knew that I would get out safe and sound,” he said. “From day one, I had this inner feeling. I kept telling myself not to give up and to stay strong — for the family.”

Kupershtein says he was held underground with five other hostages in what he describes as “a small dungeon.” He recounts being starved, beaten and threatened with execution. He also describes a period of particularly violent abuse that followed inflammatory comments by far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, when captors told them the attacks were retaliatory.

One unlikely lifeline was a radio transmitter broadcasting Quran passages. Kupershtein managed to find and tune an Israeli military radio station from nearly 30 meters underground, using its broadcasts to learn that his family was campaigning for his release. Hearing their voices and details about demonstrations gave him hope during the bleakest stretches.

Family Sacrifice and Public Advocacy

Bar is the eldest of five siblings and had been the family breadwinner after his father, Tal, suffered a severe stroke in a motorcycle accident three years earlier. Tal had been a volunteer paramedic with United Hatzalah. During Bar’s captivity, Tal worked intensively with speech therapists and regained his ability to speak so he could publicly advocate for his son’s return — even appearing at demonstrations.

“I saw my father sometimes at demonstrations; they even brought me a picture of him standing at a demonstration,” Kupershtein said. “I also heard my mother organized a birthday for me at Hostages’ Square.”

Release and Aftermath

In April 2025, a propaganda video released by Hamas showed Kupershtein and another captive, Maxim Herkin, emaciated and pleading to be brought home. He says he agreed to speak only so his family would know he was alive.

After his release, Kupershtein boarded a flight to Washington to meet President Donald Trump, whom he called “an emissary of God” and thanked for his role in the release process. Asked about prospects for peace, he replied that while he personally wants peace, his experience has left him skeptical about reaching an agreement with Hamas.

Back home, Kupershtein describes himself as an “upgraded version” of who he was before captivity, grateful for the simple act of waking up in Israel rather than in tunnels underground. Yet he acknowledges the psychological scars remain: sleepless nights, intrusive thoughts and moments when he feels unable to share in others’ happiness.

He says he deliberately surrounds himself with a loving, supportive network as part of his recovery and believes healing will come with time.

Key facts: Bar Kupershtein was abducted on October 7, 2023, spent 738 days in captivity, and credits counting, faith and rare radio contact with helping him survive. His family’s public advocacy, including his father’s recovery efforts, played a crucial role in keeping his story alive until his release.