When a group of Hamas terrorists dragged Eli Sharabi from his home on Kibbutz Be’eri on Oct. 7, 2023, he yelled “I’ll come back!” in the direction of his wife and two daughters.
After being held in Gaza for 491 days, he did come back. And now, he has written the searing “Hostage” as a record of his ordeal.
Readers know from the outset what Sharabi didn’t learn until his release on Feb. 8, 2025: His wife, Lianne; 16-year-old Noiya; and 13-year-old Yahel were murdered in their home after Sharabi was abducted. The book’s dedication page features a photo of their smiling faces, alongside a photo of the author’s brother Yossi, who was killed in captivity.
Why We Wrote This
Countless people have endured horrific suffering after more than two years of war in Gaza. It is gratifying that one good and hopeful man has had his life returned to him, our critic writes, as completely changed as it must be.
One wonders whether Sharabi would have endured had he known of these losses. As he tells it, from the moment he is driven from Israel into Gaza by the euphoric terrorists, he remains laser-focused on one thing: surviving and returning to his loved ones. Lianne was raised in England, and she and the girls had dual British-Israeli citizenship. Lianne screamed “British passport!” when the five terrorists stormed in and the men demanded their documents. The belief that Hamas might be reluctant to harm British citizens provides Sharabi a measure of reassurance over the next 16 months.
