In the Horrors of Captivity, Extraordinary Resilience and Faith

After 491 days in Hamas captivity, and the murder of his wife, two daughters and brother, Eli Sharabi has emerged with a perspective that defies comprehension. “I’m lucky,” he says, a statement that seems impossible coming from a man who has endured unimaginable suffering and devastating loss.

Sharabi shared his harrowing experience with Israeli Channel 12’s “Uvda” program in a raw, unflinching interview that reveals not just the horrors of captivity, but the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit.

“If there’s one thing I’ve been saying to everyone from the start – family, medical staff, friends – it’s this: Don’t walk on eggshells around me,” Sharabi emphasized. “We talk about everything. The loss, the captivity – whatever people want.”

Torn from His Family

On October 7, 2023, terrorists stormed Sharabi’s home in Kibbutz Be’eri. “The scene was simply horrific, a fear unlike anything else. Ten terrorists in the house – two grab me, two grab the girls and stand with them in the kitchen,” Sharabi recounted.

His British-born wife Leanne desperately repeated “British passport,” hoping it would protect them. As he was being taken, Sharabi called out to his daughters, “I will come back!” – words that would become his survival mantra for the next 16 months.

“I just went into survival mode,” he explained. “No matter what happens to me now, no matter what they do to me, I’m coming back. I will never forget the look in their eyes, how terrified they were.”

Eli Sharabi entering the hospital in Israel upon his release

It was only after his release that Sharabi learned the devastating truth – his wife and both daughters, Noya and Yahel, were murdered that day. His brother was also murdered in captivity.

Life Underground

Images of Sharabi’s release ceremony shocked the world, showing him emaciated and frail, reminiscent of Holocaust survivors being liberated from concentration camps. The physical toll of his captivity was immediately apparent, a visible testament to the brutality he endured.

For over a year, Sharabi was held 50 meters underground in tunnels that he describes as so well fortified that military rescue operations would have been nearly impossible without risking hostages’ lives.

I was chained for a year and four months, with thick, heavy locks that tore into my flesh.

“The chains on my legs never left me from the day I arrived in Gaza until the last day,” he revealed. “Some people were shackled only part of the time – I was chained for a year and four months, with thick, heavy locks that tore into my flesh. You sleep with it, you wake up with it, you pray with it,” he said of the iron chains that bound him for over a year.

Sharabi and his fellow captives endured severe malnutrition. “The idea that a free person can just take fruit or drink water—that’s what you dream about every day. You don’t care about the beatings, even when they break your ribs. I didn’t care – just give me half a pita,” he said. “At some point, you can’t believe what’s happening to your own body. During the worst periods, we ate once a day – a bowl of pasta, maybe 250-300 calories.”

Showers came once a month, if at all, with just half a bucket of cold water.

Bonds Formed in Darkness

Despite the horrors, Sharabi formed profound connections with fellow hostages. He spent time with Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Ori Danino, and Almog Sarusi before they were murdered. “After three days with them, it was as if I had known them all my life,” he said. Hersh shared words from Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl that sustained Sharabi throughout his captivity: “When there is a ‘why,’ one always finds the ‘how.'”

The power of faith is crazy, I felt I had someone watching over me.

For most of his captivity, he was held with Or Levy, Eliya Cohen, and Alon Ohel, with whom he formed a bond that helped sustain them through the darkest times. Speaking about Alon, who remains the last hostage in their tunnel, Sharabi said with emotion, “I know everything about him, about his family, every date, every hobby of his sister, his brother, his parents, I know everything. How can we leave him behind?”

Finding Faith in Darkness

One of the most surprising revelations from Sharabi’s testimony was his unexpected turn to prayer. “I am not a religious person, but there, from the first day I was kidnapped, every morning I say, ‘Shema Israel,’ which I have never said in my life. The power of faith is crazy, I felt I had someone watching over me.” he shared.

This spontaneous embrace of the most fundamental Jewish prayer – “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One” – speaks to how adversity can awaken spiritual connections that lie dormant in ordinary life. In his darkest moments, Sharabi found himself reaching for the ancient words that have sustained the Jewish people through centuries of persecution.

Hams captivity survivor Eli Sharabi: I am not a religious person, but there, from the first day I was kidnapped, every morning I say, “Shema Israel,” which I have never said in my life. The power of faith is crazy. pic.twitter.com/CoAT7H5Ysr

— Raylan Givens (@JewishWarrior13) February 27, 2025

A Perspective That Transcends Suffering

Sharabi’s perspective on his suffering is remarkable.

“I’m not angry,” he said. “I’m lucky. Lucky that I had Leanne for 30 years. Lucky that I had those amazing daughters for so many years. Lucky that they didn’t kill me. Lucky that after 16 months, I was able to come back to my family. I’m lucky.”

Eli with his wife and daugthers

Jewish tradition teaches that how we respond to suffering defines us more than the suffering itself. The Talmud tells us that “One who blesses God for the bad that happens just as for the good will be rewarded with good” (Berachot 60b).

While Sharabi’s statement isn’t about blessing the tragedy, his ability to focus on gratitude for what he had rather than bitterness over what was taken shows a profound spiritual strength.

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks wrote that “To be a Jew is to be an agent of hope.” Eli Sharabi embodies this idea. He doesn’t deny the horror of what happened; he speaks openly about it. But he refuses to let that horror define his relationship to life.

A Lesson for Us All

As we approach Purim, a holiday that celebrates the Jewish people’s survival against those who sought to destroy them, Sharabi’s testimony reminds us of the indomitable Jewish spirit that has sustained our people through millennia of persecution. The Book of Esther’s famous verse – “For the Jews there was light and joy, gladness and honor” – speaks to our people’s ability to find light even after periods of darkness, a tradition that Sharabi embodies with his extraordinary perspective.

His story challenges us to consider: How might we cultivate such gratitude in our own lives? How can we honor the memory of those we’ve lost by appreciating what we still have?

Eli Sharabi, through his profound gratitude for the years he shared with his family, teaches us that even in our darkest moments, we can choose how we carry our memories forward and find meaning in tragedy.

His testimony is not just about survival – it’s about choosing life, even when that choice seems impossible.

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