Author Talk: Liz Hirsch Naftali

February 21, 2025, 8:30 pm - 9:30 pm

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The post-Rhythm & Ruach speaker for February 21 will be Liz Hirsch Naftali. Liz is the great-aunt of Abigail Mor Edan, the four-year-old American who was taken hostage on October 7th and, after 51 agonizing days, was miraculously freed. Since then, Liz has dedicated herself to advocating for the release of others still held captive in Gaza.

Abigail’s release was a moment of pure relief, but Liz’s work continues. She’s still fighting every day for those who are still in captivity. Liz recently wrote a book, Saving Abigail: The True Story of the Abduction and Rescue of a Three-Year-Old Hostage, where she shares the unimaginable journey Abigail and her family endured. It’s an emotional account of resilience and hope, and it brings forward so much of what hasn’t been widely told in the news.

Abigail’s Abbreviated Story:
Three-year-old Abigail Mor Edan, a dual US-Israeli citizen and her family were some of the first victims of Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7th when Hamas terrorist stormed her community, Kfar Azza, about two miles from the Gazan border. Abigail’s mother was slaughtered in front of her and her 6-year-old sister and 10-year-old brother. The children ran outside and found their father who was a Ynet photographer and had been taking some of the earliest documented photographs of the assault. They started fleeing to shelter, when Hamas terrorist then killed their father while he was holding Abigail. Abigail’s siblings ran back to their house and locked themselves inside a closet and hid for 14 hours just feet away from their mother’s lifeless body until rescued by special forces. It was assumed at the time that Abigail was murdered while in her father’s arms. It wasn’t until days later that the family learned that Abigail, now an orphan, survived, and crawled out from under her father’s lifeless body, covered in his blood, to a neighbor’s home who took her in as the rampage raged. That entire neighbor’s family then disappeared. But later, Abigail’s name appeared on a list of hostages along side those of that neighbors family.

Here is Liz’s Bio:
Liz Hirsh Naftali is the great-aunt of Abigail Mor Edan, a three-year-old who was held hostage in Gaza for fifty-one days. Abigail was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, from her community, Kfar Aza, after her parents were both murdered in front of her by Hamas terrorists. In the wake of that attack, Naftali became a fervent advocate working for the release of the hostages. Even after Abigail’s release on November 26, 2023, she remains dedicated to working for all those who remain in captivity in Gaza.

Liz is a businesswoman and the host and creator of The Capitol Coffee Connection podcast, a platform where she invites prominent, diverse leaders to talk about the common thread that binds us all together—our shared experiences, stories, and the very essence of our heart and humanity—leaving out politics and policy.

She was raised in Los Angeles where Tzedakah and Tikkun Olam were an important part of her upbringing. Her father, Stanley Hirsh, was the publisher of the Jewish Journal, president of the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles and chairman of the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency. Her mother, Anita Hirsh, was a leader in the Soviet Jewry movement and Jewish Family Service in Los Angeles. Naftali is the mother of five children and has lived between Israel and the US since 1992.