Return from the 'Horror of Gaza Tunnels'; What Did Freed Israeli Women Hostages Say?

Seven Israeli women held hostage by the extremist group Hamas in Gaza for about 16 months shared their accounts of hunger, constant movement in Gaza's tunnels, and cooking for their captors after being freed and returning to their families in recent days. Israeli media, which has been narrating the stories of each kidnapped citizen since the beginning of Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, reflected the protests and efforts of worried families and the public for the release of the hostages, continuously engaging with family members, friends, and acquaintances of the abducted. These hostages had become familiar faces for every Israeli over the past 16 months, so much so that on the day of their release, they felt as if a loved one had returned from the 'Horror of Gaza Tunnels'; liberation from a group that the United States and the European Union consider 'terrorist.' Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbracher, who were civilians, were released on January 30. Romi Gonen had gone to southern Israel with her friends to attend the 'Nova' music festival; several of her friends were killed, and some strangers found her injured and attempted to help her but were also killed; Hamas members abducted Romi while she was on the phone with her mother, bleeding from a gunshot wound to her hand. Romi compared her return from Gaza's tunnels to a 'rebirth.' Emily Damari and Doron Steinbracher were residents of the 'Nahal Oz' kibbutz, where Hamas members, in a surprise attack on October 7, pulled many residents from their beds and took them to Gaza. Emily was shot that day and raised her hand to her face; the bullets severed her two middle fingers. Her family was unaware of their daughter's amputation until the day of her release. Emily described her time in captivity in Gaza as 'hell' and stated that she is now the happiest person on earth. On the helicopter that took her and two other young women from the Gaza border to Tel Aviv, she wrote on a board with a marker: 'The nightmare is over.' Doron Steinbracher was abducted when many of her relatives were also taken, and several were killed. Some of her relatives, including her sister and her children, have been released. According to an agreement between Israel and Hamas, four Israeli female soldiers were also freed on February 25. Naama Levi, Karina Arayev, Liri Albag, and Daniela Gilboa were on surveillance duty at the army base on the Gaza border. Liri had just started her military service the day before the Hamas attack and had gone to that base. Hamas forces pulled the female soldiers out of their beds in pajamas, killed 15 of them, and took seven others, injured, to Gaza. The Israeli army managed to rescue one of the female soldiers, Uri Magidish, four weeks after the war began. Another female soldier, Noa Mertsyano, was injured in an Israeli military operation in Gaza, and her killing in Shifa Hospital in Gaza by Hamas was a disaster for Israelis and the families of the hostages. Daniela was released amid many rumors that greatly worried her family. On the day of her release, her family learned that their daughter had returned with a bullet in her body. Daniela's boyfriend's mother said she had gone through a 'very, very hard' time. Among the female soldiers, only Agam Berger remains in Gaza, and Hamas has committed to releasing her on February 1 if the agreement continues. The female soldiers have stated that Agam was with them during this time, but she was taken to another location a few days before their release, and their separation was 'very hard.' Israeli media have not yet been allowed to interview the released soldiers, but from what relatives and friends have said to the media after meeting them, insights can be gained about their 470 to 477 days of captivity under Hamas. Young women spoke of hunger and forced starvation during their long captivity in darkness and tunnels. Sometimes they had only one pita bread a day and perhaps a little olive oil to dip it in, to the point where their stomachs swelled from lack of food; however, there was no treatment. The captors occasionally moved the women from tunnels to civilian houses in Gaza as they fled from the Israeli army, where they wore clothes and hijabs and were hidden among many war refugees. These women spoke of the Israeli army's attacks near some locations and their fears. They said they supported each other emotionally, but the captors forbade them from crying and hugging each other. There were very few opportunities to bathe and wash their hair, which was in miserable conditions and without hot water. Several of the women said they had to cook for their captors while they themselves did not eat that food. They added that they saw some senior Hamas figures during their captivity, but further details on this have not yet been reported. The female soldiers said they learned a little Arabic, with Daniela making better progress than the others. Four of the soldiers mentioned that during the initial period of their captivity, an elderly man among the hostages was with them, who cared for them and mediated with the captors to provide them with better food and hygiene facilities, but that man was killed. Four of the released female soldiers told their families that they witnessed the killing of their comrades on the day of the Hamas attack, which caused them significant psychological harm during their captivity in Gaza. They added that the captors told them they would never be released and that their fate could be like that of other killed hostages. Some of the abductees were in tunnels for eight consecutive months. In total, young women spent up to 13 months of the 15 and a half months of war in tunnels, did not see daylight, and had very little contact with people, even with their captors. After each time spent in the tunnels, they were taken back two or three at a time or alone to houses where families supporting Hamas and children lived. Daniela and Karina had the chance to be together for almost the entire time. The deputy head of the medical department of the Israeli army stated that the mental and physical condition of hostages kept together was better than those isolated by the captors. According to Colonel Dr. Avis Banoff, Hamas places hostages it releases in better conditions a few days before their release, moving them to better locations, allowing them to shower, providing them with better clothing and more food so that they appear acceptable on the day of their release. Dr. Banoff speculated that the next hostages to be released would be elderly and sick men, with worse mental and physical conditions. On October 7, 2023, what happened in Israel? Daniela, when she embraced her mother, Orly, after her release, said her first sentence was: 'Mom, you are a hero.' This statement indicated that she was aware of her mother's travels and tireless efforts, as a doctor, to warn about the critical situation of the hostages, both as a mother and a physician, having traveled multiple times to the USA and other countries and the United Nations. The released women said they learned about the major events that occurred during their 477 days in Hamas's captivity. Because the captors mostly watched Al Jazeera television, they occasionally had the opportunity to understand what was happening from the images, even if they did not understand the news in Arabic. The captors informed them of the death of 21 Israeli soldiers in an army operation to destroy a building in Gaza, apparently to break their spirits. Liri Albag told her sisters and only brother that she heard their interviews with various media and found strength to maintain her spirit. Daniela said that once she heard her mother's voice in a media interview and learned that several of her male relatives were still hostages of Hamas, and one of them had been killed. Liri's high spirits; 'Number One' Liri Albag, before being handed over to the International Red Cross in 'Palestine Square' in Gaza, made a heart shape with her hands, smiled, and waved her hands while wearing a green uniform that Hamas had put on her and three other women to emphasize their military status. She and the other three women knew that they would soon be freed from their captors and that falling into the warm embrace of their parents was very close. Israeli media referred to the happy faces and confident behavior of these hostages, whom Hamas forced to participate in this staging, as a 'victory image.' According to the Kan television network, the female soldiers turned the coercion imposed by Hamas into victory and behaved proudly in front of thousands of 'spectators' in Gaza and among hundreds of armed Hamas forces. These soldiers said they were not afraid of this 'show' by Hamas. Liri, in her meeting with her parents, said: I am 'Number One.' According to testimonies from some of the released, it became clear that 19-year-old Liri acted like a commander for the other female soldiers accompanying her in the tunnels or elsewhere during her 477 days of captivity, being a source of strength for others, so much so that during this period, she was also nicknamed 'Number One.' A month ago, Hamas released a video of Liri in the tunnels. Moments after returning to her parents' embrace, she told the people of Israel in a short video that she loves them and knows that they and the army worked tirelessly for her and the other hostages' release. Psychologists, considering the experience of the release of about 110 child and female hostages who were freed two months after captivity in Gaza, have told the media that the happy and smiling faces of the released women do not reflect their true selves, and healing their psychological wounds will take years. 'Hamas killed the hostages, but Netanyahu is also to blame.' The importance of the hostages' lives for both sides The Israeli army spokesperson confirmed that they did not carry out operations anywhere in Gaza where they suspected hostages were present, as they did not want to endanger their lives. This caution increased after the deaths of six hostages, which caused great sorrow in Israel. Hamas has managed to secure the release of 50 security prisoners from Israeli prisons for each living soldier hostage and demands the release of 30 more Palestinian security prisoners for each civilian hostage. With the release of the seven female hostages, 90 others remain hostages in Gaza. The Israeli army estimates that 35 of them have been killed. While the release of women and girls was a priority in the agreement, there is still no news of the release of Shiri Bibas, a young mother, and her two small children, and her family has told the media that their sorrow has deepened, fearing they may receive their bodies. If only this first phase of the ceasefire agreement is implemented well, Hamas and other militants will still hold 64 other Israeli hostages. The future of the agreement remains uncertain, and its process will be long and complex, but the released hostages, their families, and a large part of the Israeli public have emphasized that they will continue to fight until all hostages are returned.