Former Gaza hostage Eli Sharabi revealed new details about his experience in Hamas captivity in an interview with N12 on Friday, where he discussed the publication of his memoir 'Hostage.'

The last time Sharabi was seen in public, he was emaciated and weighed a mere 44 kilograms. "I look better, I feel better. I gained 16 kilos in four months. That's a lot," he told N12.

In the interview, Sharabi discussed how grief and trauma fit into his life, stating that he has no flashbacks or nightmares, which psychologists could not explain.

"They haven’t seen cases of trauma this severe. And I really did go through multi-trauma: captivity, and also an enormous, enormous loss of my wife and daughters. It’s something they can’t explain."

He spoke about his daughters and wife, explaining that he thought they were still alive when he was released.

"When I came back and hear that they were murdered five minutes after I was kidnapped, I can’t understand the situation and I demand answers.”  He continued, "I want to see them, I want to hug them, I want to draw strength from them, I want to show them that I’m okay, that I’m no longer a poster.”

Former hostage Eli Sharabi attends a press conference at the United Nations headquartes in New York City, March 20, 2025 (credit: Liri Agami/Flash90)
Former hostage Eli Sharabi attends a press conference at the United Nations headquartes in New York City, March 20, 2025 (credit: Liri Agami/Flash90)
In his book, he wrote that he told the other hostages he was with to focus on the positives every day. "That’s the clearest and most natural thing that should happen to us there. It gives us hope and strength,” he told N12.

There was 'friction' among the hostages 

Sharabi discussed how he and the hostages he was with, Alon Ohel, Eli-He Cohen and Or Levi, fought during their captivity.

"There are definitely frictions, arguments, and difficult situations, hunger, the fear that you won’t survive, and that sometimes brings you to unwanted behaviors,” he said, adding that the fights were mostly over food.

"It’s the resource that, at least in your eyes, feels the most essential for survival. Every crumb you get into your mouth makes you feel better and that you’ll survive better in the future."

He discussed the feeling of being handed an Israeli flag upon his release, and spoke about how he chose to wrap it around himself.

"For me, it was the most natural and obvious thing to do when I got off the helicopter. I didn’t think in that moment what it would do or how it would be perceived. You’re waiting, you miss Israeli-ness so, so much,” he said.