The three Israeli hostages returned from Gaza have recounted how they helped each other survive 471 days in Hamas captivity.
In statements verified by military censorship and approved by the hostages for publication, they recalled living in underground facilities with little medical care and daily uncertainty about their fate.
Emily Damari, injured in the leg and having lost two fingers of her left hand during the terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023, was treated in captivity by Romi Gonen, another of the hostages released on Sunday and a trained paramedic, according to Channel 12.
One of the hostages, who was not identified, said: “I didn’t think I would come back, I was sure I would die in Gaza.” »
The newly released trio – Gonen, Damari and Doron Steinbrecher – were initially detained together, but later separated, according to the report. Damari and Gonen said they were moved dozens of times between different hiding places, both above ground and underground.
The hostages rarely saw daylight and were mostly held in underground facilities. However, they were temporarily imprisoned in humanitarian compounds initially intended for displaced people from Gaza, according to the report.
British-Israeli Emily Damari was among those released on Sunday.
During their captivity, the women cooked, took care of each other and some received medicine. One hostage recalls undergoing a medical procedure without anesthesia.
The hostages said that while in captivity, they also had limited access to television and radio broadcasts.
“We saw your struggle, we heard our families fighting,” one of the women told her relatives, who attended rallies and lobbied for their release. “We realized our families had survived, but we discovered we had lost a lot of friends.”
They also said they were “scared to death” during their transfer from Hamas to the Red Cross.
Ninety-four hostages remain in captivity, 30 of whom are expected to return to Israel in the coming weeks during the first phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The second round of outings is expected to take place on Saturday.
The remaining 64 hostages are to be released during the second and third phases of the deal, according to a timetable that has not yet been announced.
