Israel Reports: Released hostages tell of mistreatment
Shortly after the release of three more Israeli hostages from the hands of Islamist terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, the first accounts of the abductees have come to light.
16.02.2025, 02:44
SDA
The more than 16 months in the hands of the Islamists were a "very harsh captivity, including physical abuse", wrote the newspaper "Times of Israel", citing reports from several Israeli TV stations. Sagui Dekel-Chen had been tortured during interrogations by Hamas. According to the TV station Kanal 12, his body shows corresponding scars.
The 36-year-old had not known for months whether his family had survived the massacre by Hamas and other extremists from Gaza in Israel on October 7, 2023, which left 1,200 people dead and around 250 abducted. Only shortly before his release did his kidnappers tell him that his wife had given birth to a daughter, the Kan broadcaster reported. They had also given him earrings for his wife, but he had not believed them.
A video distributed by the Israeli army after his release showed Dekel-Chen in the arms of his weeping wife, who also told him the name of their daughter: Shakhar Mazal. The 29-year-old Alexander (Sasha) Trufanov, on the other hand, did not know until his release that his father had been killed in the massacre on October 7, it was further reported. He had burst into tears when he was told by representatives of the Israeli army.
As the "Times of Israel" further reported, Iair Horn (46), who was also released, lost dozens of kilograms in weight during his captivity and had hardly received any medical care. All three hostages were held most of the time in tunnels in Chan Junis in the south of the Gaza Strip, just a few hundred meters from their homes in Kibbutz Nir Oz. They had often suffered from hunger, but had also learned Arabic during their captivity. The three men were released on Saturday in Chan Junis in exchange for 369 imprisoned Palestinians in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.
