Miraculous Escape: A Kibbutz Resident's Tale of Survival

This remarkable woman, a resident of Kibbutz Be'eri, had a miraculous escape after being trapped in a closet in her home. During this time, terrorists were firing indiscriminately, setting houses ablaze with their residents, and spreading destruction and death everywhere they went. 

In an especially moving video, the woman shared that she was saved thanks to R' Shimon bar Yochai and the sacred Zohar, which she took with her into the closet in her bedroom, where she stayed for 12 (!) hours. "On the holy Shabbat, the barrage began, and I did not want to enter the safe room because I saw people burning, calling for help and unable to escape," she recounted in the video. "I was torn, meaning talking with Hashem—what should I do?" 

"I ran quickly to the living room here, grabbed my book of the Zohar, Pashat Pinhas, and entered the closet," she says, as the video shows her walking from the living room to the mentioned closet—a simple wooden structure with two doors. "I went into the closet here, among the hanging clothes, shut the door, and started to open the book of the Zohar. I looked at the book and spoke with R' Shimon for the entire 12 hours, and from among the letters, 'lights' emerged. I felt as if this surrounding light enveloped me."

At a certain point, the terrorists blasted open the door to her home while she was in the closet. "During this time, they blew open the door, and I was not afraid. Nothing happened to me. It was as if I were in another world. They were in their world, and I was in mine. I lay there with the book, speaking to Hashem and said to Him: 'If you want to take me, take me, Hashem.' But now, thanks to the righteous R' Shimon, help me so that I can connect with you more."

At this point, the woman shared that the terrorists stayed in her house for 'two minutes' and then left. "I texted my neighbor across the street, whose home was completely destroyed, and I tell her, 'Zahava, listen, they left me. They came in for two minutes, then left.' She tells me, 'They are knocking on my door right now.' They took her and all my neighbors to the last house, where they were shot. They murdered everyone. It's simply horrific, but that's what happened."

"My house remains standing, the only one in the neighborhood—and it's not thanks to me; it's thanks to the inner faith, and I saw that R' Shimon bar Yochai helped me. The letters emerging from the light—it was incredible. Later they came back, blew up my window with grenades—but nothing touched the closet. I don’t know what happened to others, but I wasn't afraid of anything. After 12 hours, soldiers arrived and took us out," she concludes. 

The closet where she hid:

Her murdered friend's destroyed house (may God avenge her blood), visible from her room where a grenade was thrown: