President Trump invites released Israeli hostage Eli Sharabi to White House after watching his shocking testimony

The brother of former hostage Eli Sharabi told Israel’s Channel 12 that after watching Eli’s interview on the program Uvda [Fact] last week, former U.S. President Donald Trump invited him to the White House. Eli, who was freed last month after 491 days in Hamas captivity, recently shared his traumatic experience.

Eli's brother, Sharon, said Trump watched his brother's interview and invited him to visit him in Washington, D.C.

Eli shared that he was frequently beaten, chained and starved by his Hamas captors. He said the terrorists treated him and the other Israeli hostages even worse when they were angry with the Israeli government. 

During his captivity, Eli Sharabi was held with three other hostages, including the hostage Alon Ohel, who remains in captivity. 

Sharabi told Channel 12 that he only agreed to the interview because he promised Ohel he would fight for his freedom. 

Ohel was injured at the time of his capture on Oct. 7, 2023, and has not received proper medical attention. Israeli is concerned that Ohel could lose his vision because of an injury to one of his eyes. 

Following Sharabi’s release in February, Trump had commented that Sharabi and other released Israeli hostages looked like Holocaust survivors. 

“I watched the hostages come back today and they looked like Holocaust survivors. They were in horrible condition. They were emaciated. It looked like many years ago, the Holocaust survivors, and I don’t know how much longer we can take that,” Trump stated at the time, warning the Hamas terrorist organization that “at some point, we’re gonna lose our patience.” 

Sharabi is set to fly to the U.S. capital on Monday to meet with Trump ahead of his State of the Union address on Tuesday.

According to Sharon, Eli will fly to the United States on the private plane of philanthropist Miriam Adelson, and the meeting with Trump will take place on Tuesday. 

Adelson was a major Trump donor in his most recent campaign, and the relationship between the president, Adelson, and her deceased husband Sheldon, goes back many years. The Adelsons were instrumental in encouraging Trump to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem in 2017. 

"Survivors of captivity, including my brother Eli, will meet with Trump in Washington this coming Tuesday and explain to him in the most direct way possible the urgency of returning all the hostages, living and dead," Sharon said. 

He told Channel 12 that “extensive excerpts from 'Uvda' were transferred to Trump, with English subtitles, and he was shocked again, but also has great sympathy for those who survived the captivity, including my brother.” 

Trump is slated to deliver the first "State of the Union" address of his new term to Congress later on Tuesday. Eli, along with other former hostages, was allegedly invited to attend as Trump's guest of honor.