Tal Shoham was freed from captivity in Gaza 505 days after Hamas militants abducted him. He said there were times during his ordeal when he didn't think he'd be alive the next morning.

" the 40-year-old Israeli who also holds Austrian citizenship told The. “There are so many ways to die there.” Shoham was one of dozens of hostages released from Gaza in February as part of a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel that has since been broken.

Israel's president said at a Holocaust remembrance ceremony on Thursday that the return of hostages held by Palestinian militants in Gaza was a "universal moral imperative" and called on the international community to help end "this horrific humanitarian crime".