Blindfolded marches through stifling tunnels. Worm-infested food. Months without bathing or changing clothes.
A chilling report released Tuesday by Israel’s Health Ministry paints a grim picture of the conditions endured by 12 hostages abducted during Hamas’ October 7 massacre and freed earlier this year. Based on medical records and firsthand testimony, the ministry concluded the captives were subjected to “systematic physical and psychological torture” in violation of international humanitarian law.
The findings — shared with the International Committee of the Red Cross and other health agencies — come as roughly 50 hostages remain in Gaza and just days after terror groups released videos of two appearing emaciated. Officials warn the surviving captives are “in immediate danger” and urged urgent delivery of food, water and medical care.
The report, drawn from the testimonies of four women and eight men, details prolonged confinement in cramped, airless tunnels often less than two meters (6.5 feet) wide and under 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall. Captives were jammed together for weeks or months, deprived of privacy and basic hygiene. Transfers were sudden and often carried out at night, with hostages bound, blindfolded, and threatened at gunpoint.
Insects, extreme temperatures, and makeshift latrines were constant. Food, when provided, was meager — typically a single daily portion of stale pita or rice, sometimes crawling with worms — and water was often untreated sewage or seawater. Some captives went months without a change of clothing, wearing the same underwear for half a year.
Doctors documented severe malnutrition, vitamin deficiencies, untreated bullet and shrapnel wounds, fractures, burns, and nerve injuries causing chronic pain and functional impairment. Many lost 15–40% of their body weight and suffered muscle wasting, bone density loss, and persistent infections.
Medical neglect was routine. Antibiotics were withheld or misused, worsening injuries. One captive collapsed while attempting self-treatment; another was given the wrong medication, risking death. Several endured prolonged solitary confinement — one for over 50 days, others for more than a year — leading to sensory deprivation and psychological collapse.
Survivors described captors terrorizing them by holding armed grenades and counting down, mocking them with clean food and water before denying access, and making humiliating remarks. At least one woman endured months of physical harassment.
The ministry linked the length and severity of captivity directly to long-term physical and mental damage, warning that chronic pain, hormonal disruption, fertility issues, and delayed-onset PTSD are likely permanent for many survivors.
“As long as additional hostages remain in captivity in Gaza, the rehabilitation and social integration process for those who have returned will be harmed,” the report said.
The Red Cross has had no access to the captives since their abduction. Families of hostages are now pressing the government to prioritize rescue efforts over expanded military operations in Gaza, fearing such moves could endanger those still alive.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
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These are the evil, sadistic Nazis uber-woke countries like France, the UK, and Canada are breathlessly rushing to legitimize on the world stage. No wonder support for Israel is floundering in the West. As the Chazal taught:
“He who is merciful to the cruel will inevitably be cruel to the merciful.”