In the crowded room, a local spiritual leader chanted verses in the Isan dialect of northeast Thailand while attendees knelt on woven mats. Between their clasped hands ran a single white string as they performed a ceremony to welcome and protect the man who sat among them: Surasak Rumnao, who had been held hostage in Gaza for more than a year. Dressed in a white shirt with closely cropped hair, Surasak sat beside his friend Pongsak Thaenna, who was also abducted near the Gaza border during Hamas’ deadly attack on October 7, 2023. The two men had kept each other going throughout their 15 months in captivity; now, they smiled as family and friends took turns tying sacred white threads around their wrists to bestow blessings and ward off evil. Friends and family tie sacred threads around Surasak’s wrist in Ban Dung, Thailand, on February 15, 2025.Kocha Olarn/CNN Of the…
