Freed Israeli hostages and their families are giving harrowing first accounts of captivity in Gaza, describing prolonged isolation, torture, starvation, and psychological manipulation.
New testimonies aired on Hebrew media on Wednesday include claims that captors pressed one hostage to convert to Islam in exchange for food and that others were confined in tunnels for nearly the entire two years since their abduction.
Tami Braslavski, mother of freed hostage Rom Braslavski, said her son “was held alone” by Palestinian Islamic Jihad and was taken down to the tunnels only “two days before his release.”
“His captors demanded that he convert to Islam. He refused. He went through abuse, and I don’t want to elaborate further,” she told Hazinor. She added: “Nothing really makes me feel good, except one thing – he stands by the window and looks at the sky.”
In a separate report, Israel Hayom quoted Braslavski’s mother saying that Rom “was held alone for two years, and for part of the time he was held with the bodies of other hostages beside him.” She said he reported the location of those bodies to Israeli authorities upon his return.
She described psychological abuse that included being told that “Iran bombed Israel,” being shown selective footage to convince him his parents had given up on him, and repeated efforts to induce him to fast during Ramadan or read the Quran in return for food and better conditions. “As soon as he came back, he kept saying, ‘I am Jewish… I am strong,’ and he put on tefillin,” she said.
Ynet published further details from Braslavski’s mother, who said his torment intensified in recent months and recounted an episode in which, amid severe hunger, he freed himself from his shackles and tried to cook pasta by lighting a makeshift fire, prompting local residents to bang on windows as smoke billowed out. “He feared he would be lynched,” she said. She added that since returning, he asks for “sky, sun, and air” rather than gifts or devices.
Accounts from other released hostages, aired by Hazinor on Tuesday night, describe years spent underground, constant restraint, and extreme weight loss.
Elkana Bohbot said he “was in tunnels throughout the entire captivity” and knew of the public campaign his mother led for his release.
Alon Ohel said he was left alone in a tunnel after the previous deal until Guy Gilboa-Dalal was placed with him. Ohel learned he would be freed only a day before it happened and now suffers from shrapnel injuries and impaired vision.
IDF soldiers Matan Angrest and Nimrod Cohen, both wounded during their kidnapping, endured “severe physical abuse,” according to the report.
Cohen said that early in captivity, he was kept with the Horn brothers, Sagui Dekel-Chen, and David Cunio, and that guards even allowed them to watch Olympic broadcasts at times. He recalled being told, falsely, that his father had “attacked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu” while in the United States.
Hostages 'constantly shackled,' left in tunnels without light
Hazinor added that many returnees were “constantly shackled,” most were kept in tunnels without daylight, several went barefoot for extended periods and struggled to readjust to shoes, and significant weight loss was evident, including in Eitan Horn and Maxim Herkin.
The report said Hamas interrogated the captives harshly, especially soldiers, and used snippets of Israeli media to inflict psychological harm. “It’s been a long time since I saw the sky,” one hostage told officers after returning.
Braslavski’s mother stressed that her family’s ordeal underscored the urgency of bringing the remaining hostages and the bodies of those who were killed back to Israel. “It’s not over,” she told Hazinor. “We still have hostages whose bodies must be returned.”