EXCLUSIVE – ‘This is psychological torture’: Brit whose family are still being held by Hamas says ‘the waiting is unbearable’ and describes tearful reunion with those who have been freed

•  Pazit Ziv flew to Israel earlier this week after six of her relatives were exchanged

A British-Israeli whose family members are still being held by Hamas has described it as psychological torture and says ‘the waiting is unbearable’. 

Pazit Ziv, who lost three members of her family in the attacks, has spoken of ‘tearful’ reunion with surviving relatives who were freed by the terrorists.

She flew to Israel earlier this week after the six were exchanged but also revealed one was still being held in Gaza.

The university academic from West Yorkshire told the Mail: ‘It’s great to see them again but we will not be happy until we are all together and one is still being held.

‘I don’t want to go into too much detail because we don’t want to jeopardise anything, but the waiting and the watching is terrible.’

Pazit Ziv lost three members of her family in the attacks. Pictured: Pazit speaking at an event for hostages taken by Hamas

Yahel Shoham, aged three, upon her arrival in Israel after being freed 

Naveh Shoham, aged eight, upon his arrival in Israel after being freed by Hamas

Earlier this week members of her extended family were released, and they included Yahel Shoham, three, and her brother Naveh, eight.

Their mother Adi Shoham, 38, and her mother Shoshan Haran, 67, were also freed following 50 days in captivity.

However, their father Tal, Adi’s husband, is still being held, while another relative Sharon Avigdori, 52, and her daughter Noam, 12, were reunited with family in Israel.

But tragically three of Pazit’s relatives were killed in the October 7 attacks at the Be’eri kibbutz which is just three miles from Gaza.

They were Sharon’s brother Avshalom Haran, 66, and Shoshan’s brother Eviater Kipbnis, 65, and sister-in-law Lilach Kipnis, 60, who was killed along with their Filipino carer Paul Castelvi.

Pazit was born in Israel but has taken British citizenship and her trip was funded by the Jewish community in London.

She said: ‘It’s overwhelming to know that they have been released but everything is still very raw.

‘It’s a huge happiness for us but there are people still missing and we just want them back.

‘I was watching Yahel who has lovely blonde curly hair getting on to the bus and it was frightening and emotional to watch.’

Pazit, 52, who came to Britain in 2013, and the younger members of her family were freed with Irish Israeli Emily Hand, nine.

Tal Shoham, who is still being held hostage

Shoshan Haran stands next to Adi Shoham, 38, and her son Nave Shoham, 8, following their arrival in Israel on November 25 after being held hostage by Hamas

She said: ‘There have been tears but it’s going to take a long time to get things back to normal.

‘The children are talking in whispers because they were told to keep quiet by the terrorists.

‘When it happened, the messages were being sent to different members of the families – they murdered my cousin, his sister-in-law and brother-in-law.

READ MORE: Incredible moment ‘hero’ Israeli hostage stares down masked Hamas terrorist after she is finally released following 53 days in captivity in war-torn Gaza 

‘Others were taken hostage but have now been released but I don’t want to go into too much detail, about who is held because we don’t want to attract any attention.

‘But what I want to say is that it is almost two months, and we know nothing of the conditions that the remainder are being held.

‘We need them all back urgently, the waiting is unbearable for us. It’s psychological torture.

‘The ones who have been released are slowly coming to terms with what happened, and they didn’t even know some had passed away.

‘Actually, I should say murdered, not passed away because they were killed. They were violated and destroyed.

‘They haven’t gone into too much detail, but I can tell you it wasn’t a vacation in the Maldives for them.

‘They were kept underground in tunnels with limited food and they were moved around and some were split up. They didn’t see any light for weeks.

‘In the minutes we have spent talking there are people still being held and we must get them back as quickly as possible.’

She went on: ‘Even in the face of all this I’m getting hate mail, some people are so awful. I’ve had ten members of my family killed or kidnapped and people want to attack me.’

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