When Eli Sharabi (52) was released after 16 months as a Hamas hostage, he was greeted by the news that his entire family had been murdered. The news was met with jubilation in Aftonbladet’s comments section.

Or Levy, Eli Sharabi and Ohad Ben Ami were released on Saturday after 491 days of captivity by the terrorist group Hamas. After being paraded through the streets of Gaza and subjected to humiliating ceremonies, the clearly emaciated men were allowed to return to Israel, where their families were waiting.

Before the three men were handed over to the Red Cross for onward transport across the border to Israel, they were interviewed by the terror group. Sharabi said he was looking forward to seeing his family again. It was only when he was met by Israeli journalists that he was informed that his entire family – wife Lianne and teenage daughters Noiya and Yahel – had been murdered by Hamas in the 7 October terror attack.

Levy, Sharabi and Ben Ami were in visibly worse condition than the hostages released in previous exchanges. After undergoing medical examinations, they were assessed by Israeli doctors as “malnourished” and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to “take appropriate measures” after Saturday’s release, pointing to the “serious condition of the three hostages”.

Or Levy, Ohad Ben Ami and Eli Sharabi before and after their time as hostages of the terrorist group. Photo: Screenshot Facebook.

However, when the pictures of the three men and the tragedy concerning their families were conveyed by the Swedish media, there was jubilation in social media. Aftonbladet’s Facebook post had 61 laughing emojis after less than 24 hours, meaning that more than one in ten reactions expressed joy at the men’s fates.

The joy is expressed almost exclusively by people with Arabic names, but some Swedish names are also among those celebrating Hamas’ murder, torture and terror.