Former hostage says captives could have been freed 'long time ago'

A former Israeli hostage has said that all Gaza captives could have returned home "a long time ago", as relatives of newly released hostages described the torment endured by their loved ones.

Arbel Yehud was held in captivity for nearly 500 days before being freed earlier this year under a previous Gaza truce.

She spoke on Wednesday at a press conference alongside families of newly freed hostages, including her partner Ariel Cunio, released this week along with the remaining living captives.

"We could have brought them back a long time ago," Yehud said.

She said the deal that was brokered by US President Donald Trump could have been struck earlier, in turn saving the lives of more hostages.

"While we are here, fortunate to embrace our loved ones, there are dozens of families that never will," said Yehud.

During their attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war, Hamas-led militants abducted 251 hostages to Gaza.

- 'Bombings do not save' -

A vocal critic of the Israeli government, Yehud has participated in rallies calling for a ceasefire and the return of hostages.

Earlier this year, she accused authorities of endangering captives by stalling negotiations.

"I want you to know that when Israel blows up deals, it does so on the heads of the hostages," Yehud said at a rally earlier this year.

"Their conditions immediately worsen, food diminishes, pressure increases, and bombings and military actions do not save them, they endanger their lives."

Yehud's own release in January was marked by chaotic scenes, with television footage showing masked gunmen struggling to clear a path for her through crowds gathered to witness the exchange.

Critics of the Israeli government -- and especially of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu -- argue that Israel could have ended the war months earlier, during a ceasefire agreed in January.

That truce lasted until mid-March, when Israel resumed strikes in Gaza.

This ceasefire, the second in the two-year war, was largely based on a three-stage plan announced by former US president Joe Biden in May 2024.

More than 30 hostages were released from Gaza as part of that truce.

- 'Start a new journey' -

At the same press event on Wednesday, Sylvia Cunio, mother of Ariel and David Cunio, described the anguish of waiting for her sons' return after losing several family members in Hamas's October 7 attacks.

"My children are home! Two years ago, one morning, I lost half of my family. Two of my children, two of my daughters-in-law, and two of my granddaughters were lost on the face of the earth," Cunio said.

"The world collapsed on me and my family in an instant."

Cunio, who emigrated with her husband from Argentina to Israel in 1986, has also been active at weekly Tel Aviv rallies urging a ceasefire to secure the hostages' release.

"For two years, I didn't breathe. For two years, I felt like I had no air. And today, I stand here, in front of you, and I want to shout out loud, David and Ariel are here!" she said.

"I know it will take time until they recover, but I trust my children."

Also speaking Wednesday, Kobi Kalfon, father of freed hostage Segev Kalfon, said his son endured "extreme" suffering during his two years in captivity.

"It is important to note that his two years in captivity were truly difficult, reaching many extreme situations of hunger, mental, emotional and physical abuse," said Kalfon.

"We now start a new journey, his journey to rehabilitation. It will not be simple, but we will be with him, hand in hand."