Eli Sharabi’s Hostage is a raw and profoundly moving account of loss, endurance, and moral clarity amid horror. Written by the brother of Yossi and Yitzhak Sharabi — both victims of the Hamas massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri — it is a book that transcends personal tragedy to speak for an entire nation still living with the trauma of that day.
Bearing Witness
Sharabi’s narrative begins not with politics, but with family. Through vivid recollection, he reconstructs the lives of his brothers — fathers, husbands, and ordinary Israelis — whose humanity is too often erased in the abstraction of “hostage negotiations.” As the book unfolds, it becomes a chronicle of every family’s nightmare: unanswered calls, conflicting reports, the agonising limbo of “missing” that stretches for months.
The strength of Hostage lies in its emotional precision. Sharabi writes without self-pity, choosing instead to focus on purpose: ensuring that the hostages are not forgotten, and that the world remembers who is responsible. His words sear with dignity, not rage. In a time when international attention drifts and moral relativism blurs accountability, Hostage restores the human centre of Israel’s struggle.
A Mirror to the Nation
The book is not only a personal journey but a reflection on Israel itself. Sharabi confronts uncomfortable truths about internal divisions and the failure of leadership that allowed Hamas’s atrocities to occur. Yet he also affirms the resilience of Israeli society — the networks of volunteers, the families of the missing who became a movement, and the rediscovery of unity amid grief.
Sharabi’s account is also a rebuke to the world’s indifference. His story lays bare the moral bankruptcy of international organisations that speak of “both sides” while hostages remain underground, and of activists who chant for “resistance” while excusing terror.
A Testament of Moral Clarity
Hostage is not easy reading — nor should it be. It forces readers to confront the unbearable human cost of October 7, and the cruelty of those who glorify or justify it. Yet it is ultimately a story of love, faith, and persistence. In honouring his brothers, Sharabi reclaims their humanity from the hands of their captors.
Verdict
Eli Sharabi’s Hostage is a book of sorrow and strength — intimate, unflinching, and indispensable. It demands empathy, not abstraction; justice, not equivocation. For anyone seeking to understand the human dimension of Israel’s war against Hamas, and the enduring wound of its kidnapped citizens, Hostage is essential reading.
