The hostages who were released from Hamas captivity and returned home have shared the harsh experiences of their captivity, which attest to the extent of their abuse by the terrorists.
Kan News reported that the stories the hostages have told indicate that they were physically assaulted, with the most severe violence afflicted on the young men. Some hostages have scars and burns on their bodies that testify to this.
In some cases, the hostages were beaten by the terrorists' gun squad, and in other cases, they were abused by the families who imprisoned them, including young children.
The released hostages said that they fell ill many times because they were given rotten or expired food.
In addition, psychological terrorism was used against them, they were told about the deaths of their family members and received frequent threats of being executed.
It was also reported that during initial interrogations, the released hostages told of other hostages who had been held captive together with them. Signs of life were also received from hostages who will be released in the second phase of the deal.
When Yarden Bibas, Keith Siegel, and Ofer Calderon were released they testified that in the last days before their release, the terrorists began to increase their food rations, apparently so that they would look healthier when they arrived in Israel.
The hostages were forced to sign documents thanking their captors, while the entire process was documented by Hamas. In addition, once every few weeks, they were forced to participate in the filming of videos that had not yet been published, in which they were made to talk to their families. In some cases, as part of the psychological abuse, the hostages were even forced to bid their families farewell in these videos.