Eliya Cohen, a former Israeli hostage, has described how he pleaded with his captors to shoot him after being taken into Gaza, before enduring starvation and beatings to emerge from 505 days in captivity. He spoke at the Nova Exhibition in London on Tuesday evening, recounting his abduction from the Nova festival in southern Israel during the Hamas-led incursion on 7 October 2023.
Cohen was left to believe that his long-term partner Ziv Abud had been killed in the massacre, only learning the truth upon his release in February 2025. The couple had hidden under corpses in a bomb shelter, but Cohen was discovered by Hamas. After being threatened and hauled into Gaza on a pickup truck, he said he and other captives were attacked by locals, prompting him to ask his captors to shoot him.
Cohen recalled being treated without painkillers for a gunshot wound, with a doctor giving him a wet towel to stifle his screams during surgery. He was moved to several locations, including an underground tunnel where he was chained to other hostages and fed a daily ration of pita bread to share between four. He described weekly beatings and being allowed to use the restroom only once a day, with LED lights preventing sleep.
Cohen managed to keep faith by withholding some bread to mark the Friday night Sabbath and thought of his family. He learned English from scratch using a book and conversation practice. His captors warned that any rescue attempt would result in being shot in the head. Cohen was released on 22 February 2025, discovering then that his partner had survived and campaigned for his release. The couple are now engaged.
