"Captivity was nothing. Without them, I am in hell now."

Israel from the Inside with Daniel Gordis · May 1, 2026 · 1m

There were days, days that almost of all of us remember, when photos like these were ubiquitous. On hostage posters on the news, on the internet. Everywhere.

Then the living hostages returned home. The signs disappeared, but a few of the returning hostages offered a window into the horrors that they had endured. Some, Eli Sharabi hardly the only one among them, became very public figures. They traveled the world giving speeches, or wrote (often bestselling) books, or gave extensive interviews.

And then, gradually, most of them edged away from the spotlight.

Yarden Bibas, the husband of Shiri…