Carmel Gat, 39, was an occupational therapist. A traveler and a lover of life, she always turned toward others. On October 7, 2023, she had just returned from a trip to India. Her loved ones described her as a woman of incredible strength, determined, in love with music, and lighting up every place she went.

Carmel lived in Kibbutz Be’eri, where her parents also lived.

The day before the attack, her younger brother Alon, his wife Yarden, and their 3 ½-year-old daughter Geffen, as well as Carmel’s little brother Or, had just returned from abroad to celebrate Simchat Torah with the family.

On October 7, Carmel’s mother, Kinneret Gat, was murdered.

Alon, Yarden, and Geffen were taken by Hamas to Gaza. At one stop, they managed to escape. Yarden handed little Geffen to Alon before she was recaptured. Alon and his daughter survived by hiding.

Carmel was also kidnapped and declared a hostage.

After 54 days of captivity, Yarden was released. Carmel, however, was not among the hostages freed. Two women who had been detained with her said that she helped them stay grounded with yoga, guided meditation sessions, and a notebook in which she marked the days.

Carmel’s friends created a support group to demand her immediate release. They organized weekly yoga sessions in front of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, near Hostage Square. More than a hundred people joined, hugging each other at the end of each session, many of them in tears.

Before her kidnapping, Carmel was pursuing a master’s degree at Hebrew University. She worked as a coordinator for the Eshnav program, helping people with mental illness integrate into the workforce and enter college. Her former patients, who were very attached to her, said she fought for them and their rights.

On September 1, 2024, the IDF announced that Carmel had been killed in captivity. Her body, along with five other hostages—Eden Yerushalmi (25), Alexander Lobanov (33), Ori Danino (25), Almog Sarusi (27), and Hersh Goldberg-Polin (23)—was recovered by the IDF from a tunnel in Rafah, Gaza Strip.

Forensic examinations revealed horrifying details about their captivity and deaths. The bodies bore gunshot wounds, some to the head and others to the torso, inflicted at point-blank range. It was estimated that they were shot shortly before the Israeli forces arrived, within the previous 48–72 hours. The bodies also showed signs of binding, severe neglect, and superficial injuries likely inflicted during the abduction, reflecting the inhumane conditions they endured.

Carmel now rests in Kibbutz Be’eri, where she was born and where she was kidnapped.

“A lot of people told us she was just a ray of sunshine that lit up the room—or a rainbow because of all the colors she wore,” her cousin Gil Dickmann said.

Her funeral was held behind closed doors, out of respect for Carmel, who, according to her cousin, was a reserved person.