‘The death bunker’: Three Israeli hostages freed in truce swap with Hamas

The fate of the remaining children held in Gaza – Kfir Bibas and his brother Ariel – as well as their mother Shiri Bibas, remains unknown.

The three men released on Saturday looked frail and disoriented, and were forced by their captors to address crowds gathered at their handover ceremony.

Here is what we know about the men, who are now back in Israel.

Armed men shot dog, set family on fire

Eli Sharabi, who will turn 53 in February, was at his home in the Beeri kibbutz with his British-born wife and their two teenage daughters when Hamas stormed it on October 7, 2023.

The armed men shot their dog before locking the family in their safe room and setting it on fire. The bodies of his wife and two daughters were later identified.

He was taken to Gaza with his brother Yossi. The Israeli military said early last year Yossi was killed and his body was in the hands of Hamas in Gaza.

Abducted with wife from their home

Ohad Ben Ami was abducted with his wife Raz Ben Ami from their home in the Beeri kibbutz.

She was released during a one-week truce in November 2023.

Images have circulated on social media showing him being seized in a T-shirt and underwear.

Ben Ami, who has dual Israeli and German citizenship and turned 56 in captivity, is the accountant for his kibbutz and a keen bike rider.

‘The death bunker’

Or Levy and his wife Einav Levy went to the Nova music festival, leaving their 2-year-old son Almog with his grandparents.

The usually inseparable couple, who met in high school, tried to hide from the Hamas attackers along Route 232, the only path away from the festival.

“When gunfire erupted shortly after their arrival, they sought refuge in a concrete safe room, later known as ‘the death bunker’. There, Einav was murdered, and Or was taken captive,” the Hostage and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.

Or was abducted with three other young men.

– Agence France-Presse