Overview

• Shoham, abducted with his family from Kibbutz Be'eri on Oct. 7, 2023, says he was held for 505 days in Gaza before being released during a February 2025 truce.
• He describes months in a narrow tunnel cell with four mattresses and a hole for a toilet, recounting beatings and psychological torment by guards.
• Shoham says fellow captives Guy Gilboa-Dalal and Evyatar David remain in Gaza, noting Hamas-released images in August that showed David emaciated.
• He says 20 living hostages are still held; his wife and two children were freed in the first deal in late 2023, and his father-in-law Avshalom was killed on Oct. 7.
• The Oct. 7 assault abducted roughly 250 people and, per Israeli tallies, killed about 1,200, while Gaza health authorities report more than 67,000 deaths in the war, as Shoham voices deep pessimism about near-term coexistence despite renewed deal-making efforts.