Subjected to Inhumane Treatment, Slain Israeli Hostage Held by Hamas Beneath Gaza, as Perched by Sisters to CNN
Eden Yerushalmi was taken from the Nova music festival during Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel, and her corpse was amongst six bodies discovered by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) towards the end of last month.
Eden's sisters, Shani and May, shared with CNN's Anderson Cooper that they received evidence indicating her survival on three occasions, including three weeks before her demise.
"It's incredibly challenging for us," Shani Yerushalmi explained to CNN. "At times, it feels like a dream, unreal, as if it's not happening to us, because we honestly believed that Eden would return home alive."
Details regarding Eden's captivity have been shared with her family by the IDF since her body's return from Gaza. Shani described the tunnel where Eden was confined as follows: "Their bodies couldn't fully stand... They couldn't sleep beside one another, only in a line. No windows, no air, no light. Scant food, and when they needed to use the restroom, they were forced to do so in a bucket."
The IDF reportedly found the group's bodies in a Hamas-operated tunnel beneath the city of Rafah, stating that they were tortured and murdered "not long" before the troops could reach them. The IDF divulged to the family that Eden had been shot in the head at point-blank range, and her hands bore defensive marks, according to May, who shared this information with CNN.
Eden's death, along with those of five other Israeli prisoners, sparked widespread outrage in the country, chiefly directed at the government's handling of the crisis under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. On October 7, over 1,200 individuals were reportedly slain and more than 250 were taken hostage, as per Israeli authorities. Over 40,000 Palestinians have perished in Gaza since the conflict commenced following Israel's subsequent war.
Netanyahu has been subjected to considerable pressure to broker a ceasefire-for-hostages agreement that would guarantee the safe return of more than a hundred individuals still detained in the enclave.
"In that specific tunnel, I can't even imagine staying for more than a day," Shani said to CNN.
Eden, alongside Hersh Goldberg-Polin and Carmel Gat, was to be freed under the "humanitarian category" according to a framework agreement reached between Israel and Hamas in early July, as relayed by two Israeli officials to CNN following the discovery of their bodies. One of them added: "Our prime minister postponed it."
The 23-year-old from Tel Aviv was a pilates instructor and worked as a bartender at the Nova music festival on October 7. Upon hearing sirens, Yerushalmi reportedly sent a video of rocket fire to her family group chat, stating she was leaving the festival, as per the Hostages Families Forum.
For four hours, Yerushalmi communicated with her sisters, May and Shani, who listened to her harrowing ordeal as she attempted to escape. Her final words were: "They've got me."
May, who opted to view Yerushalmi's body upon its return to Israel, told CNN: "We gave her a final hug as a farewell. She was so emaciated, her bones were protruding." An autopsy later revealed that she weighed only 79 pounds at the time of her death.
The siblings described Yerushalmi as a friendly and compassionate person, with May stating: "The most significant aspect is that she was a hero, and she endured 11 months in those tunnels."
Despite the ongoing tension in the Middle East, the world was saddened by Eden's tragic death and the loss of five other Israeli prisoners. The Israeli Defense Forces discovered their bodies, including Eden's, in a Hamas-operated tunnel beneath the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip.
