The UN Security Council convened on Friday for a special session on the hostages still held in Hamas captivity.
The session opened with testimony from Eli Sharabi, a survivor of Hamas captivity, who shared his account at a press conference and with the Council members during the session.
"On October 7, my heaven turned to hell. Sirens began, Hamas terrorists invaded, and I was ripped away from my family, never to see them again," he noted.
“I didn't know I should have said goodbye forever,” he said with regard to the moment he was kidnapped.
"My peaceful home – my slice of heaven – was gone,” he said, adding that outside, “over a hundred terrorists" were "filming themselves celebrating, laughing.”
As the terrorists drove into Gaza, he was beaten, and a mob of civilians tried to lynch him at the border, he shared, adding, “I was their trophy."
He was kept underground, chained, starved, beaten, and humiliated, adding that the chains he was kept in "tore at me until the day I was released."
“Begging was our existence,” he said, noting his captors showed “no mercy.”
“Through it all, I held to the hope I would see my family again," he stated.
“Before my release, Hamas took pleasure in showing me a picture of my brother Yossi,” he said. “They told me he was dead,” Sharabi affirmed, adding, “I refused to believe it.”
“Where was the Red Cross? "Where was the United Nations?” Sharabi asked.
He noted how civilians in Gaza saw his suffering and “cheered our kidnappers.” “They were definitely involved," he said.
Sharabi affirmed he was “here today to speak for those still trapped in that nightmare. For my brother Yossi, murdered in Hamas captivity, his body is still held hostage. For Alon Ohel, still 50 meters underground.
"For Hersh, Ori, Eden, Carmel, Almog, and Alexander, murdered in cold blood by their captors.For every hostage still in Hamas’ hands. I am here to tell you the whole truth," he said.
Sharabi bore witness to what happened to humanitarian aid in Gaza
With regard to the humanitarian aid delivered to the Gaza Strip, Sharabi said that as an "eye witness," he saw what happened to that aid. The "dozens of boxes paid by your government," he said, were stolen by Hamas and fed the "terrorists who tortured me and murdered my family."
The "terrorists would eat many meals a day from the UN aid in front of us," while the hostages never got any of it.
The US representative said during the meeting that Hamas was "responsible for the resumption of hostilities." “Fighting could end tomorrow if Hamas released the hostages and laid down its arms," she said.
The UK representative noted, “Hamas must be held accountable for their despicable actions.”
Outside the United Nations headquarters in New York, supporters greeted Sharabi prior to his address, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.
Sharabi's brother, Sharon, said, "Thank you everybody for showing your support. It warms our hearts to know that wherever we are, we have people by our side."
The UN Security Council will convene tomorrow at 10:00am EST for a special session on our hostages still held in brutal Hamas captivity.
The session will open with testimony from Eli Sharabi, a survivor of Hamas captivity, who will share his harrowing account with the Council…
— Danny Danon דני דנון (@dannydanon) March 20, 2025
Before Sharabi's testimony, Danny Dannon, Israel's ambassador to the UN, wrote on X/Twitter, "While the UN continues its attacks on Israel, Eli will remind the world who we are fighting for."
"We will not stop until Hamas is defeated and every hostage returns home."
The release
Eli Sharabi was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be'eri on October 7 and separated from his wife Leanne and daughters Noya and Yahel.
It was only after his release from captivity that Sharabi, who was held hostage by Hamas for 491 days, finally learned that his wife and both daughters were murdered that day.
Sharabi was released by Hamas in February as part of the hostage-ceasefire deal. He was freed together with Ohad Ben Ami and Or Levy.
An initial medical examination reported to Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center and Sheba Medical Center revealed that the former hostages were in serious condition.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said the severe weight loss and serious conditions of released hostages was a "crime against humanity."