The costs of Israel's longest war, for Israelis

Daniel Estrin

Itay Stern

October 07, 2025 / 2:07 pm

This story is part of NPR's coverage of two years since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and the ongoing war in Gaza. For more reporting, analysis and different views of the conflict, go to npr.org/mideastupdates .

JERUSALEM — On a street named Gaza lives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a top-floor apartment near a sushi restaurant.

Outside, one recent afternoon, a father stood holding a megaphone.

"Bibi and Sara," he calls out to the prime minister, using his nickname, and his wife. "It's Rom's dad."

Ofir Braslavsky's 21-year-old son Rom is still being held hostage in Gaza, two years after Hamas led an attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, s

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