In the three days since Israel and Hamas announced a cease-fire, 58 hostages have been freed and details have begun to emerge about their nearly two-month captivity inside Gaza.
While information about the conditions has been tightly controlled, family members of victims have begun to share details about their loved ones’ experiences. Most of the freed hostages, though injured, appear to be in stable condition.
One woman said her cousin and aunt, Karen and Ruth Munder, were randomly fed mainly rice and bread, and they lost about 15 pounds in just 50 days. Her family members said they slept on rows of chairs placed nearby in a room that looked like a reception area and had to wait for hours before going to the bathroom.
Adwa Adar, grandson of the freed 85-year-old hostage Yafa Adar, said his grandmother had also lost weight. She said her grandmother was held captive after her family members were presumed dead, but later received news that they had survived.
Eighteen foreign nationals, mostly Thai nationals, have also been released.
The experiences of another detainee, 85-year-old Yocheved Lipschitz, who was released before the current ceasefire, revealed a more nuanced picture.
Lifshitz said the detainees were treated well and received medical care, including medication. The guards kept the situation clean, he said. He said the hostages were given cheese, cucumber and pita once a day and the kidnappers also ate the same.
It appears that recently released hostages are also being held underground. Eyal Nouri, a nephew of 72-year-old Adina Moshe, who was released on Friday, said his aunt had to “adjust to sunlight” because she had been in the dark for weeks.
Doctors have warned of serious psychological damage of prison terms. Israel has provided counseling and other assistance to those released.
Many of the freed hostages were in good physical condition, able to walk and speak normally, but at least two required more serious medical care. One of the hostages freed on Sunday, 84-year-old Alma Abraham, was taken to Israel’s Soroka Medical Center in the southern city of Beersheba in critical condition.
The hospital director said he had a pre-existing condition that was not properly treated while incarcerated. Another young hostage was seen on crutches in a video released by Hamas on Saturday.
The ceasefire comes less than two months after Hamas’ bloody cross-border attacks on Israel killed 1,200 people and wounded hundreds more.
In the 50 days since the hostages were taken, Israel has ravaged the Gaza Strip with ground and air strikes, killing at least 13,300 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-ruled territory’s health ministry. Israel has disputed these figures.
Under the current four-day ceasefire, Hamas has agreed to release a total of 50 Israeli hostages in exchange for Israel releasing 150 Palestinian security prisoners and increasing aid to the beleaguered region.
Eleven more hostages will be freed on Monday, the last day of the ceasefire, leaving around 180 hostages in the Gaza Strip. Israeli officials have said they are willing to extend the ceasefire by one day for every 10 hostages released by Hamas.
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