A Minnesota native who had protested Israeli military action in Gaza and her husband — the son of Holocaust survivors- — were murdered by Hamas terrorists in a kibbutz near the Gaza border that has become synonymous with the militants’ atrocities.
Cindy Flash, 67, and Igal Flash, 66, were killed inside a safe room at their home in Kfar Aza — a pastoral farming community that was turned into a sprawling slaughterhouse Saturday.
Keren Flash, the couple’s adult daughter, told CNN Thursday that she received a text message from her mother Saturday, saying: “they managed to break into the safe room.”
“That was the last time anyone heard from them,” Keren said.
For days, her parents’ fate remained unknown, leading to speculation that they might have been taken to Gaza as hostages.
But shortly before her interview with CNN, Keren got the devastating news that both her mother and father were dead.
The daughter said she was relieved to learn that her parents “apparently died instantly so at least it was quick and relatively painless.”
Cindy, a native of St. Paul, Minnesota, emigrated to Israel decades ago after falling in love with the country during a visit, reported USA Today.
She married Igal, an Israeli, and the couple settled in Kfar Azar — a community located just a few miles from the Gaza border that boasted about 800 residents before Saturday’s massacre, which saw entire families gunned down and babies beheaded and burned.
Keren said her mom, whom she lovingly described as “all heart and soul,” was a staunch advocate for the rights of Palestinians.
“Whenever there was a military operation, [she] would always protest,” Keren said, “…because you don’t treat human beings like that no matter what their religious belief is and what their ethnicity is.”
“They were some of the best people that I have ever known,” she added of her parents.
2005: Israel unilaterally withdraws from the Gaza Strip over three decades after winning the territory from Egypt in the Six-Day War.
2006: Terrorist group Hamas wins a Palestinian legislative election.
2007: Hamas seizes control of Gaza in a civil war.
2008: Israel launches military offensive against Gaza after Palestinian terrorists fired rockets into the town of Sderot.
2023: Hamas launches the biggest attack on Israel in 50 years.
Over 1,300 Israelis are dead, more than 3,000 are wounded and at least 100 were taken hostage, with the death toll expected to rise after Hamas terrorists fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of militants into Israeli towns.
Hamas terrorists were seen taking female hostages and parading them down the street in horrifying videos.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced “We are at war” and vowed Hamas would pay “a price it has never known.”
Gaza health officials report at least 1,400 Palestinians have been killed and more than 6,000 injured.
“They were good people. They cared about other people. They fought for other people’s rights and other people’s voices.”
During the assault on Kfar Aza, Keren, her husband and their 1-year-old daughter were huddled together in a safe room at their home just a few doors down from her parents.
The terrorists did not breach their hideout, and they were eventually rescued by Israeli soldiers and taken to a temporary shelter in Tel Aviv.
Follow along with The Post’s live blog for the latest on Hamas’ attack on Israel
Keren said that despite their kibbutz’s close proximity to Gaza, their family never felt unsafe living there.
On Saturday, the Flashes had planned to enjoy a picnic together, followed by an annual community kite-flying event where a DJ was going to play.
Instead, Keren and her family were awakened around 6:30 a.m. by the sounds of blaring alarms, which prompted them to bolt into their safe room.
Her parents did the same at their own house.
Throughout the harrowing hours that followed, which were punctuated by the sound of explosions and the endless rat-tat-tat of automatic gunfire, as terrorists went door to door systematically executing unarmed civilians, Keren stayed in touch with her relatives and friends on text message chains.
“We started losing contact with so many people on various WhatsApp groups,” she said.
”We would hear that they were wounded, and then they would just drop off completely.”
Some 1,300 people have been killed in Israel during the large-scale surprise attack, among them at least 27 Americans, officials said. Another 3,000 people have been injured.