Sure. Starved. Wounded. Tortured. These are the situations that some hostages being held in Gaza nonetheless face, in keeping with data their households mentioned they’d acquired from Israeli army and safety officers after Hamas launched three captives on Saturday as a part of a cease-fire settlement.
The emaciated look of three hostages launched in a ceremony in Gaza staged by Hamas final weekend — Eli Sharabi, 52; Or Levy, 34; and Ohad Ben-Ami, 56 — and the main points of their captivity have kinfolk of the remaining captives sounding the alarm in regards to the pressing want for the continuation of the phased cease-fire deal. The urgency comes because the militant group mentioned on Monday it could indefinitely postpone the subsequent hostage releases, set for Saturday, citing Israeli cease-fire violations.
Earlier than they had been handed over to Pink Cross officers in alternate for 183 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday, the frail, painfully skinny hostages had been paraded onstage earlier than a crowd within the metropolis of Deir al-Balah, Gaza, every holding a Hamas-issued “launch certificates,” and made to recite phrases written for them — together with due to the militants who had held them for 16 months.
A physician in control of overseeing the therapy of two of the freed Israeli hostages later mentioned they had been in poor situation. The third was in a “extreme dietary state,” in keeping with an official on the hospital the place he was being handled.
Hamas has mentioned it treats its captives benevolently.
Underneath the primary phases of the cease-fire deal, the armed Palestinian group agreed to free 25 residing hostages and the our bodies of eight who had been killed, in alternate for about 1,500 Palestinian prisoners. Thus far, about half of these exchanges have been carried out.
Hamas on Saturday denounced “the brutal therapy of our prisoners” by Israeli officers. “This consists of ongoing assaults, torture, and disrespect for age or the extreme well being situations suffered by many prisoners,” it mentioned in an announcement, highlighting what it mentioned was the distinction in therapy between the hostages and the prisoners.
Idit Ohel, whose son Alon Ohel turned 24 on Monday and was spending his second birthday in captivity in Gaza, informed reporters at a information briefing that she had discovered from army sources who had spoken with probably the most not too long ago launched hostages that her son was receiving little or no meals and no medical take care of a number of accidents, together with a watch damage that has left him partially blinded.
Mr. Ohel, who was captured on the Nova Music Pageant in the course of the Hamas-led assault on Oct. 7, 2023, has been held certain for a lot of the time and was tortured, she mentioned she had discovered from Israeli army officers. “It was not straightforward to listen to,” Ms. Ohel mentioned. “I have to say that I even fainted.”
“I don’t suppose there’s a mom on this world that will even be capable to sleep,” figuring out their baby was enduring such struggling, she added.
Equally, Sigi Cohen, the mom of one other hostage, Eliya Cohen, who was 26 when captured, mentioned by cellphone on Monday that she had discovered from Israeli safety forces that her son — who was shot within the leg in the course of the 2023 assault on Israel — has additionally not acquired therapy for his accidents.
Her son reportedly sees virtually no sunshine and has been certain all through most of his almost 500 days in captivity, she added.
The New York Occasions couldn’t independently verify the data. A spokesman for the Israeli army, reached by cellphone, declined to touch upon Monday, citing the sensitivity of the subject.
The not too long ago freed hostages’ reviews about what they and others have endured align with the accounts of a few of the different captives freed because the first part of the cease-fire settlement went into impact final month.
And Dr. Hagai Levine, who leads the medical crew for the Hostage Household Discussion board, an umbrella group, informed reporters on Monday that the hostages had been “starved” and endured “intentional torture,” and that many had returned house with infections that would turn out to be a risk, in addition to emotional injury.
“The findings are clear and deeply alarming,” he mentioned. “They’re topic to deliberate hunger and extreme water deprivation” and “are present process excessive bodily and emotional abuse.”
“There’s a clear and current hazard to the entire hostages’ lives,” Dr. Levine added. He mentioned that any delay within the launch of hostages would “in all probability price lives.”
The kinfolk of a few of these not too long ago launched have additionally described particulars of the hostages’ experiences — and the dire state they’re in now.
“Yesterday, my brother Or returned to us after 491 days of hell,” Michael Levy mentioned in an announcement on Sunday. His brother had been held in Hamas tunnels and returned to Israel a shadow of the person he as soon as was, his brother mentioned.
“I hugged him, however he wasn’t the identical Or who left house on October seventh,” Mr. Levy mentioned, noting that his brother had returned in poor bodily situation and spent 16 months “hungry, barefoot and in fixed concern” that every single day could possibly be his final.
However the “hardest blow” got here on Saturday, he mentioned, when his brother discovered that his spouse, Einav Levy, had not survived the assault on the Nova music pageant.
The newest particulars in regards to the situations beneath which a few of the hostages had been held got here as the delicate truce seemed to be fraying.
Ofer Calderon, who was launched earlier this month, mentioned in an announcement on Monday, “I used to be held in tunnels with out seeing daylight, had no entry to media, skilled extreme starvation situations, went total months with out showering or receiving correct care.”
He known as for a continuation of the cease-fire and famous that after the primary non permanent deal of the conflict was struck between Israel and Hamas, in November 2023, the situations throughout his and different hostages’ captivity had “severely deteriorated and have become brutal.”
“We should not cease the present deal and should proceed working to free all of the hostages,” Mr. Calderon mentioned. “Hamas is a merciless enemy who is not going to hesitate to hurt the hostages left behind.”