Doron Steinbrecher pledged that she would never wear pink again when she made her first public comments in a video after being released for more than 15 months in Hamas’ captivity in Gaza.
A year ago, she had appeared in a hostage video made by her conquerors wearing a light t -shirt. When the Palestinian fighter team of Hamas was released last month, she was dressed in a glittering magenta suit and looked pale.
Sitting in front of a camera she again took her back to the difficult times when her conquerors shot her in Gaza, Mrs Steinbrecher, 31, said in a video, which looked like and smiling at times.
“This time, he sits comfortably on a sofa with my family watching me in a warm and enjoyable place,” he said. Trying to convey that he had not been broken, he said it was important to show everyone that “I’m okay”.
As families and compatriots inside and abroad fought for the liberation of Israeli hostages, most people knew them only as people looking out of the posters. Now, with 16 Israelis released on January 19th under the ceasefire with Hamas, these restrained faces come to life in video clips, social media positions and statements by relatives providing flashes of joy and relief of freedom as well as freedom and freedom for the martyrdom they have endured.
The short messages they sent were mostly expressions of gratitude to all those who worked for their release and the reasons not to abandon until the last hostages were released.
The urgent character of this message became even clearer on Saturday, when many Israelis were shocked to see the weak state of the last three hostages released: Eli Sharabi, 52; Or Levy, 34; and Ohad ben-ami, 56.
Some relatives said that hostages released earlier were often deprived of food, suffered severe weight and muscle loss and rarely saw the sunlight. Family members said that some of the hostages had at least casual access to the radio or television and were heard or saw their relatives campaign for their release, which helped them survive.
Mr Avi Benov, a doctor and deputy head of the Israeli Army medical body, told reporters that many of the recently released hostages who had spent the last eight months underground in Hamas Tunnels in Gaza. Some hostages released in November 2023 have described suffocating humidity in tunnels that find it difficult to breathe.
Colonel Benov said that the first seven women released were recently suffered from “mild starvation”, while some still had crashes in their body from injuries suffered on October 7, 2023.
This was the day when Hamas led an attack by Gaza to southern Israel, which ended with about 1,200 dead and about 250 people who were taken to Gaza as hostages. The attack triggered a 15 -month war, with Israel’s attack on Gaza killing tens of thousands of Palestinians and destroying the territory.
Of the approximately 250 captives, the scores were released during a weekly truce later that year, and some have been killed in captivity. More than 70 hostages have not yet been returned, including at least 35 believed to be dead, according to the Israeli government.
A total of 25 hostages are expected to be released, along with the bodies of the eight others, during the initial six -week ceasefire last month.
They are exchanged for about 1,500 Palestinian prisoners, some of those who were convicted of the Israeli murder. Released Palestinians, many of whom were held free of charge, say they were facing harsh conditions in Israeli prisons and detention facilities.
Some of the Israeli hostages had been forced to appear in videos shot by their conquerors in Gaza – a practice that rights groups have denounced as inhumane treatment that could be equivalent to war crime. Israeli officials have called for a form of psychological warfare.
A few months ago, Hamas’ military wing issued a statement claiming that a hostage had been killed and released blurry images that apparently show a body wrapped in a cover. A nearby shot showed a tattoo identical to one owned by Daniella Gilboa, one of the female soldiers arrested by a small military base near the Gaza border.
But Ms. Gilboa, 20, was released on January 25th.
Reflects its test in a long instagram position on 2 February. She said that the faith and observance of Jewish rituals had passed her. She thanked her supporters for not believing the rumors that she had been killed in Gaza.
Liri Albag, another of the cautious, celebrated her 20th birthday while recovering in the hospital.
Ms Steinbrecher was abducted by her home at Kfar Aza, a rural community near the Gaza border.
In the video released, her appearance is abruptly contrasting with hostage videos when she was pale, with blond hair pulled back in a braid. Her hair was now dark and neat on a shoulder bob, and dressed in black, wearing long necklaces, a dog label and a yellow pin in solidarity with the hostages. He said he was no longer the person in the videos from Gaza.
“I’m Doron. I’m 31 years old. I’m no longer in Hamas’s captivity and I’m home, “he said.
The recently liberated hostages remained largely protected by the glow of the news media and have not given interviews so far. Medical and mental health professionals say that maintaining their privacy is essential for the long process of healing.
The videos released by the army of the emotional reunions of the hostages with close family members gave a sense of enthusiasm surrounding their return.
“Dad, I came back alive!” Another liberated Homer, Romi Gonen, 24, shouted on a cellphone after being reunited with her mother on January 19th.
Experts say that long captivity has caused physical and psychological damage and that complete recovery will take time.
“We are walking a very slow path,” said Professor Noa Eliakim-Raz, head of Retweedes Ward at Beilinson Hospital. “Of course, we see ups and downs. Every day is different.”
Some of the liberated hostages returned with injuries from the attack on October 7. Emily Damari, 28, lost two fingers after being shot in hand and also shot on the leg.
He is a fan of the Israeli MacCabi Tel Aviv football team, and in one of their matches last Monday, a video message from Ms Damari is screened on a huge screen. He thanked the players, the administration and the supporters to combat its freedom.
Ms. Gonen is still suffering from hand injury and will require complicated surgery, her mother said.
Gadi Moses, 80, an agronomist abducted from his home in Nir Oz, a village near the Gaza border, was released on January 30, showing Gaunt. Almost as soon as he returned to Israel, he promised to do everything he could to restore the community’s destroyed.
His niece, Efrat Machikawa, later told reporters that Mr Moses had been held above the ground throughout his captivity, but often moved around.
Close only in the rooms, he said, exercising by measuring steps and pacing up to six miles a day, keep his mind active with calculations and other techniques. And he remained positive.
When he first met him in the hospital, he assured her: “I am alive. I’m normal! ”
“Loneliness becomes an enemy,” said Ms Machikawa. “He managed to create a routine that kept his logic.”
