Following the announcement about the return of the body of hostage Itzik Elgarat, his brother Dani on Wednesday published a poignant letter expressing his deep pain and sense of failure in light of the abandonment of the hostages.

“The bitter news arrived, you appear on the list. You won’t return from the sadistic captivity. You were sacrificed on a political altar,” wrote Dani Elgarat in the letter, which he shared on social media site X.

He blamed the political echelon for abandoning his brother and the other hostages. “This is the final night without information. Preparations are being made for the funeral, a plot has already been chosen, the place for the shiva has been set. The fight has suffered a defeat.”

“I failed in the fight to rescue you. You were kidnapped, wounded, from the shelter. They defeated me with a ‘complete victory.’ Forgive me and the entire country, we didn’t do enough to save you, I didn’t keep my promise to bring you back safely,” added the brother.