Significant weight loss, poorly treated wounds, two years of isolation… The now former Israeli Hamas hostages, back with their families, testify about their detention conditions. Upon arriving in their country this Monday, October 13, they were able to reunite with their loved ones and are now under medical follow-up in Israeli hospitals.
There are twenty men alive who have been freed and, although their conditions as hostages were similar, they did not live their two years of detention side by side, but were for the most part alone and isolated. Nine of them testified just one day after being freed from comments broadcast on Israeli television N12.
• Ariel and David Cunio
Brothers Ariel and David Cunio, ages 35 and 28, were held separately. The first was alone for two years, while the second shared his captivity with Nimrod Cohen (21 years old) and Eitan Horn (39 years old) in the tunnels that cross the Gaza Strip.
David Cunio had no contact with the outside world or the media for two years, and during his captivity he learned that his second brother, his twin, had survived the October 7 attack.
• Gali and Ziv Berman
Twin brothers Gali and Ziv Berman were also separated and excluded from all media for having any connection to the outside world. The two 28-year-old men reported that they were imprisoned in the same city but did not know that they would be released and reunited on Monday.
The two men also claim to have experienced periods of famine, but also times when they could have had “a little more food.”
• Elkana Bohbot
Nova festival co-producer Elkana Bohbot said he spent most of his captivity chained in tunnels. According to N12, he lost all notion of time and space.
However, it seems he knew when their wedding anniversary was, as the 30-year-old also told his family that he asked to take a shower that day. A request that was initially rejected, before a Hamas member finally allowed him to wash. At that time he was shaved.
N12 also reports that Elkana is currently suffering from stomach pains due to “overeating prior to his release.”
• They kill anger
Unlike the other hostages, Matan Angrest had access to the media, in particular to videos showing Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, where he heard his relatives speak. But, according to his mother, his captivity affects him greatly psychologically.
Non-commissioned officer Matan Angrest was captured in his tank on the edge of the Gaza Strip and was wounded. According to N12, during his captivity the wounds on his fingers and hands were treated without anesthesia, which worsened his condition.
Today “he says some phrases from time to time,” his mother explains to N12. “He suffered severe torture in the first months, when he was identified as a soldier. I don’t know where he gets his strength from.”
He adds that Matan Angrest has memory lapses about his kidnapping, but still has memories of the hostage taking or the beatings he suffered.
• Avinatán Gold
Avinatan Or returned to Israel very weakened: according to his first medical report collected by N12, he lost between 30 and 40% of his weight. The television station says he was held in central Gaza, where he starved.
Furthermore, he was completely isolated from the other hostages and had very little information about the consequences of October 7.
• Evyatar David
Before his release, Evyatar David was known to be malnourished, thanks to videos released by Hamas last August. His father informed Israeli media that the young man was a victim of both physical and psychological violence.
“He’s fine, he’s slowly recovering,” his father confesses to N12.
He spent most of his life as a hostage with Guy Gilboa Dalal, but the two men were separated two months ago.
• Alón Ohel
According to Israel Television, Alon Ohel was chained in the same tunnel for almost his entire captivity. It has only moved once, 40 days ago. The N12 channel reports that his trip to the center of the Gaza Strip was unexpected and lasted many hours.
The Israeli army, for its part, indicated that his trip allowed Hamas to use Alon Ohel “as a human shield to prevent the army from taking control of the city.”
Source: BFM TV
