The Israeli Health Ministry has submitted a comprehensive medical report to the Red Cross detailing the severe physical and psychological deterioration of hostages held in Gaza, prompted by disturbing recent videos of Evyatar David and Rom Braslavski that reveal extreme weight loss and psychological distress after months in captivity.
“These images are the result of extreme and prolonged suffering,” the Health Ministry stated Tuesday in its correspondence to the Red Cross regarding the mental and physical condition of the hostages, following the disturbing documentation of Evyatar David and Rom Braslavski that was released about a week ago.
Video: Proof of life of hostage Rom Braslavski
The report summarizes the physical and psychological damage experienced by 12 returnees who gave their consent to participate in data collection. Additionally, the report exposes the physical abuse suffered by those kidnapped to Gaza since October 7 and the pattern of physical and psychological abuse during prolonged detention under Hamas and other terror organizations.
The report states that viewing the videos in which hostages Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David were filmed reflects the ongoing distress and abuse described in the report, including extreme starvation, lack of adequate medical care, and persistent manipulative abuse and mistreatment.
In these videos and compared to photographs from earlier dates, it is evident that both hostages have lost significant body weight. The report notes that in cases of prolonged and significant starvation, the damage is not only weight loss but manifests in functional impairment of body systems.
Additionally, it is apparent that both hostages are in extreme psychological distress. Their voices, words, and behavior indicate they are in great despair. It is evident that both are exhausted and hopeless, projecting a sense of abandonment and deep despair. These images are the result of extreme and prolonged suffering. For these reasons, immediate international action must be taken to provide emergency medical assistance and bring the hostages to Israel for life-saving medical treatment.
Humiliation, physical and verbal assault
From the medical files and conversations with the doctors, it emerges that the hostages experienced a severe traumatic ordeal already during the kidnapping phase itself. They suffered severe violence during the kidnapping, including gunfire that left bullets and shrapnel in their bodies. Most were victims of violent attacks by local crowds on their way to Gaza, which included severe humiliation and verbal assault, direct physical assault, and assault with objects.
From the description of the captivity survivors’ experiences emerges a harsh picture of lynching events that sometimes repeated several times throughout the day. Additionally, on the day of kidnapping and in the first days of captivity, many of the returnees were held with their hands tightly bound, until they lost sensation in their fingers while being significantly restricted in movement for long hours without attention to basic personal needs.
Some of the hostages reported witnessing the murder of family members and friends during the kidnapping, in addition to witnessing the widespread destruction and devastation in the kibbutzim and communities from which they came. These events intensified the trauma they experienced and in many cases caused severe uncertainty regarding the condition of family members and loved ones. This uncertainty accompanied and troubled them throughout their entire stay in captivity and sometimes served the terrorists against them.
Extended periods underground
The hostages were held in varying conditions, with most spending extended periods underground and shorter periods above ground. Several hostages were held in underground tunnels for long months and were allowed to emerge above ground for only a few days. When transfers occurred, they took place suddenly and particularly frighteningly with a sense of life-threatening danger. In some cases, the hostages were forced to walk long distances, sometimes many kilometers, at night, in complete darkness and/or blindfolded, without the ability to see their surroundings and movement routes.
These transfers were physically dangerous and caused significant psychological stress, as in many cases the hostages had to navigate through obstacles, narrow and dark passages, causing some to fall and get injured.
The living conditions they described are inhumane and constitute a flagrant violation of every international convention. Many of them stayed for extended or exclusive periods in underground tunnels, in extremely crowded conditions, in tiny spaces of about two square meters (21.5 square feet) at a height lower than a standing person (about 1.5 meters or 4.9 feet), where up to six people were crammed without the ability to move and without possibility of exit for long days.
The nutritional regime imposed on them constituted deliberate starvation and usually included only one meal containing pita or rice – nutrition extremely lacking in the three main food groups, minerals, and vitamins – and sometimes there were days without any meal at all. Most often the food was unfit for human consumption, moldy and containing worms and insects. The water supplied was contaminated, sometimes seawater or unfiltered sewage water, and the quantities were rationed and insufficient for daily consumption.
The poor conditions did not allow maintaining reasonable personal hygiene in the absence of access to toilets and running water. Showering was possible every several months, in cold water and with a shared towel. Clothing changes were possible rarely, if at all, while underwear changes occurred once every six months, without regard for women’s needs. During stays in tunnels, a sewage pit was used that was dug by the hostages within the living space, and in cases where they were held above ground, there were usage restrictions and prohibitions such as bans on flushing.
The hostages were forced to sleep on the tunnel surface or hard floor, without a mattress or blanket among insects and pests. They described days and nights when they suffered from freezing cold or extreme heat for many weeks, depending on the location of captivity.
