Efraim Davidov, Rescued from a Kidnapping Attempt in the Shomron: "I Saw Nothing. It's a Miracle I Came Out Alive"

It was a fairly ordinary day when Efraim Davidov, a business owner, husband, and father from Kfar Saba, was on his way to visit a friend living in the Shomron. Those familiar with this road know it is lined with several Arab villages, and many incidents have occurred where Jews have been attacked by the local residents.

Davidov (32) did not expect any special problems, but already at the first village, he was met with a surprise. "While driving, I suddenly felt someone hit my jeep from behind, twice. I stopped to check that everything was okay, that no one was hurt. Only then did I see that the car that hit me had several minority individuals inside."

Davidov got out of the car to clarify that everything was okay, but the minority individuals were not satisfied and demanded his details. "I got into the car on the passenger side to find the vehicle registration and insurance," he recalls. "And suddenly, in a split second, one of the guys got in on the driver's side, started the car, and began to drive. At first, I didn't understand what was happening. I thought he was trying to steal my car, and I tried to make him stop."

Then the blow landed on his head. "The guy pulled out pepper spray and sprayed it all over my eyes. Only then did it dawn on me that it was probably a kidnapping attempt."

What went through your mind at those moments?

"The worst-case scenario already ran through my mind, and I began to recite the Shema prayer. Then I started humming to myself 'Psalm of David.' My eyes burned terribly, I felt suffocated, and I knew that was it. I had to do something, I had to fight back. After all, my life was on the line here."

He grabbed the Arab guy by the neck and began to shake him — all the while unable to see anything. "At a certain point, I felt the vehicle stop, and I heard the driver's door open. A second later, I felt someone grab my head, and I tried, despite the intense burning, to open my eyes and understand what was happening."

"I prayed that they would find me, and that Hashem wouldn’t let this story end like this"

With a blurry vision, Davidov finally managed to make out the outlines of three guys. "One controlled the steering wheel, the second grabbed my head, and the third tried to pull me by my legs," he recalls.

At that point, he began to flail and scream like a wounded animal. "I knew that if there was a chance I would escape, now was the time to make an effort," he said.

To this day, months after the incident, he cannot explain what exactly happened there, and how it could be that such a terrifying situation ended in an indescribable miracle. "In all the chaos of shouting and flailing, I suddenly realized I was alone. They just left me there in the middle of the road and ran away."

Despite the momentary relief, Davidov understood that it was still not the time to rest on his laurels. "I knew that at this moment I was the easiest target in the world, and I had no way to defend myself. It was like fishing in a barrel, so the first thing I did was leave the car in the middle of the road and walk as quickly as possible towards the separation fence."

All the while, stumbling along an unfamiliar route and with burning eyes — Davidov did not stop praying. "I prayed that they would find me, and Hashem wouldn’t let this story end like this. I begged, 'Father, don't leave me. Let them find me and save me.'"

Blessed is He Who hears prayers: The miracle of salvation came from the most unexpected place

Hashem heard his prayer, and salvation was not long in coming. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the phone vibrated, signaling an incoming call - and here Davidov wishes to share the clear miracle within this story: "My wife knew I was visiting a friend for an hour or two, and ostensibly she had no reason to call me, certainly not when I was missing from home for just half an hour. She knew I didn't have a hands-free device, and that I don't talk on the phone while driving. Period. So what prompted her to call me at that moment? Our son, Daniel, who is a year and a half old.

(Illustration: shutterstock)

"My wife and he were playing together at home, when suddenly Daniel got up, ran to the window, and said 'Papa', 'Papa'. He was restless and wanted me."

Does that sound usual to you? It was quite the opposite. "It was so strange and unusual that my wife decided to call. Daniel had never acted like that before, and it managed to worry her as well," Davidov recalls.

As soon as he heard his wife's voice on the phone, Davidov tersely said: "Quick, call an ambulance, they tried to kidnap me." In broken words, he explained what had happened, and she called her brother, the police, and the army to the scene. "When my brother-in-law came to get me and I saw him from afar, I dropped to my knees and loudly said the 'Shema Yisrael'. I couldn’t believe the nightmare was over."

Later, when the security forces interrogated him about the incident, they decided to change the protocols and define such attempts as hostile sabotage (terrorist attack). "They told me that out of thousands of similar attack cases, I am the only one who managed to drive them away."

"But when they asked me how I did it, it was clear to me that it wasn't me at all. I explained that when the blows began, there were only two of us there - me and Hashem. And this isn’t just empty words, because I really felt it. I felt I wasn't alone and that I had strength and power that weren't actually mine, they came from a source much stronger than me. After all, it wouldn’t make sense that I could scare off three guys by myself, without a weapon and with impaired vision. What happened there, it was simply a miracle. A miracle that I came out alive, there's no other way to explain it."

Now Davidov wants to clarify one thing to everyone who reads this: "Stop saying you believe in Hashem, just know that He is here. He is present, watching, and attentive every minute. Open your heart and mind, and give a real place for the Shechinah to dwell within you."