An Israeli father who has been held by Hamas for more than two months may not know his wife and two daughters were killed by Hamas, a grieving relative told The Post.
Eli Sharabi, 51, was abducted from Kibbutz Be’eri with his brother, Yossi Sharabi, 53, during a Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, the brother’s niece Shira Matalon said.
Eli’s wife, Lianne, and his daughters – Noiya, 16, and Yahel, 13 – were “brutally killed” in the attack, Shira explained.
“I don’t think Eli knows that he lost his family, now we are his closest family,” Shira, 17, lamented.
“We were very worried about how he would take it. I can only hope for the best, I can only hope that he is strong and that he can get through all of that and still be able to live his life. First, we need him back,” he said of his uncle’s possible response to his unimaginable disappearance.
“I believe in Eli…I believe he can handle all of this and we owe it to him to bring him home, so he can be with the rest of his family, who are left,” he added.
Eli probably didn’t know his family was killed, said his niece Shira. Provided to the NY Post Noiya, 16, and Yahel, 13, were killed by Hamas on Oct. 7. Delivered to NY Post
On the morning of the Hamas attack, Shira was alone with her parents and brother at their home in a town in southern Israel, far from the kibbutz.
As the family hides in their own safe room, they are inundated with the latest horrific news from Eli, Yossi, and their family while terrorists storm the kibbutz, Shira recalls.
He’s still haunted by one of Lianne’s last messages, which read “‘we’ve never been so scared in all our lives.'”
“I can’t even think about all the things they must be going through,” Shira said tearfully.
“I know Yossi…he held the door of the safe room so that the terrorists didn’t get into the safe, but he didn’t succeed…in the end they broke into the safe room,” he explained.
“[Hamas] shoot their dogs immediately,” he added.
While Eli lost his wife and daughter, Yossi’s brother’s family was able to escape, Shira said.
Eli’s brother, Yossi, was also kidnapped on Oct. 7. Delivered to NY Post
“[His wife and daughters] have to go and hide for seven hours so that they are not killed by terrorists. They were warriors, and they managed to survive, and he didn’t know it,” he lamented.
Speaking to the Times of Israel in mid-November, Yossi’s wife Nira said “life has come to a standstill” for her and her daughter while her husband remains a hostage.
“I’m not sure they can breathe fresh air or be exposed to sunlight again, they must be alone and so scared,” Shira told The Post about relatives’ concerns about what Eli and Yossi experienced in Gaza.
Shira spoke to The Post during a visit to New York, where she and several other relatives — including one of Yossi’s daughters — spoke with the Red Cross to ask for more help returning her uncle from the clutches of Hamas in Gaza.
“I came to New York [this week] to speak on behalf of Noiya and Yahel, to bring their father home,” he said of his late cousin.
Yossi’s wife and three daughters survived the attack. Provided to NY Post
But even when Eli and Yossi return, they have a very different world to return to, Shira continued.
While Eli lost his family, Yossi’s home in the kibbutz was destroyed on Oct. 7.
“Yossi’s house has burned down, he has nowhere to go when he comes back and his family has nowhere to live now,” Shira told The Post.
“All the dead bodies on the street…and dead bodies are their friends, they grow up with them. Lying there dead or burning, and you can see the abuse they went through. Even if I tell him like this, I don’t believe it,” he said of the fatal attack.
Eli (right) has been detained for over two months. Provided to NY Post
Although the Shira family’s home was not attacked directly, they still experienced extreme trauma to see their loved ones suffer so badly.
“My parents, they are broken. I need to call an ambulance for my father. They lose it, they start having panic attacks,” he said.
Shira’s twin sister has since been called up for the army, he added.
“We were all very scared, because we realized that… the worst had happened,” Shira said.
Yossi was seen kidnapped by Hamas attackers along with 18-year-old Ofir Engel, who was visiting Kibbutz Be’eri to see his girlfriend, the Times of Israel reported.
Engel was released on November 29 as part of a temporary ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, which later collapsed due to disagreements over the release of adult male and female hostages.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
