Mother of Israeli hostages clings to hope after two-year ordeal

Two years after Palestinian militants took two of her sons hostage, Silvia Cunio is demanding an end to the war between Israel and Hamas, desperate to turn the page on her family's suffering.

Since October 7, 2023, Cunio has been fighting so she can embrace her sons David, 35, and Ariel, 28, once again.

"For me, October 7 is just one single day that continues until today, and it's a nightmare," said the 64-year-old Israeli-Argentine. "Enough is enough, this war must stop."

During a rally in Tel Aviv in August, her shout of "Enough!" tinged with rage and despair froze the crowd into silence.

Every Saturday night for the past two years, tens of thousands of Israelis have gathered in Tel Aviv and across the country to demand the hostages' return.

The faces of the captives are plastered everywhere – on walls, at bus stops and in the media.

Their fate haunts Israeli society in the shadow of the dragging military offensive in Gaza, with their absence an open wound.

The October 2023 assault on southern Israel led by the Islamist movement Hamas triggered the war that has devastated the Gaza Strip.

Of the 251 people abducted that day, 47 remain in Gaza, 25 of whom the Israeli army has declared dead.

'I run to them and hug them'

Cunio emigrated with her husband from Argentina to Israel in 1986.

They lived in Nir Oz, a kibbutz near the Gaza border that was the scene of one of the worst massacres on October 7, with around 30 people killed and 75 taken hostage.

When she joins the hostage rallies, Cunio is often accompanied by her sons' partners, themselves former Hamas captives.

Sharon Cunio was freed with her then three-year-old twins Emma and Yuli during the first ceasefire in November 2023, while Arbel Yehud was released this year after nearly 500 days in captivity.

Portraits of David and Ariel hang from the balcony of Cunio's new home in a small city about 20 kilometres (12 miles) from Gaza where many survivors from Nir Oz now live.

Sitting outside her apartment block wearing a black T-shirt emblazoned with her sons' images, Cunio recounted sleepless nights as well as the difficulty of getting up every morning and handling routine tasks.

Yet she clings to hope.

"Every day I picture their return. I run to them and hug them," she said with a faint smile.

Despite her struggle, Cunio finds the strength to care for her seven grandchildren, including David's two daughters.

She spoke of their fears and trauma after their 52 days in captivity in Gaza, how they "switch on every light in the house when they come home".

In July, the girls celebrated their fifth birthdays after almost two years without their father.

Unlike tens of thousands of Israelis who have spent weeks or months on reserve duty since October 7, Cunio's two other sons have been exempted because they have brothers among the hostages.

For countless families, the repeated reserve call-ups have taken a heavy psychological toll, with constant anxiety each time a partner, father or son is sent to the front.

'Anything can happen'

More than 460 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the Gaza campaign since the ground offensive began in late October 2023.

According to opinion polls, a large majority of Israelis now wants the war to end and the hostages' return to be the government's priority.

As Israel's offensive on Gaza City intensifies, Cunio acknowledged she fears for her sons.

She said she trusts the army but "anything can happen -- bombings, explosions, a stray bullet".

The October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally.

Israel's retaliatory campaign since then has killed 66,225 Palestinians in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run health ministry, which the United Nations considers reliable.

The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but it indicates that more than half of the dead are women and children.

US President Donald Trump's plan to end the war and secure the release of all hostages left Cunio unmoved "as long as there is no concrete information".

But in a message to those in government, Cunio said: "They must stop sabotaging again and again any deal" aimed at bringing the hostages home.