Brother of hostages: Leaving the captives in Gaza would be ‘highest price’ Israel can pay

Sharon Sharabi, whose brother Eli Sharabi is slated to be freed from Hamas captivity during the first phase of the hostage-ceasefire deal, addresses the few thousand demonstrators at the Jerusalem hostage families protest outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence.

“You are not alone, we are with you!” chants the crowd as Sharabi takes the stage on the eve of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.

On October 7, 2023, Sharabi’s brothers Yossi and Eli were taken captive by Hamas. While Eli remains alive in the Gaza Strip, his older brother Yossi was declared dead in captivity last January.

Sharabi defends the deal from its detractors, insisting that “when it comes to saving human life, there is no compromise.”

“The State of Israel is paying heavy prices in order to return the hostages home, yes, we can’t beautify it,” he says. “But the price of the hostages remaining in Hamas captivity is the highest price that the State of Israel could pay in all its history.”

Shlomo Alfasa Goren, whose sister-in-law Maya Goren was murdered by Hamas on October 7, urges protesters not to ease pressure on the government until all hostages are released from Hamas captivity.

“We will continue to anxiously wait, and we won’t waver on every single hostage who is currently left behind. The government of Israel insists on total victory, refused to stop the fighting, and this is the deal that finally succeeded,” he says.