‘I’m going to die here’: Freed hostage Matan Zangauker recounts Hamas brutality in Gaza tunnels

In his first interview since being freed, Matan Zangauker recounts his harrowing kidnapping, brutal captivity, and the inspiring fight of his mother to secure his release.

Matan Zangauker, freed after 738 days in captivity, gave his first full account of abduction from Kibbutz Nir Oz, harsh conditions underground in Gaza, and a forced trek to Rafah, in an interview with N12 on Monday.

Zangauker, a resident of Kibbutz Nir Oz, was taken from his home on October 7, 2023, during the Hamas assault on southern Israel. Speaking publicly for the first time since his release, he described being seized by armed terrorists who stormed his home and pulled him from the kibbutz’s safe room.

“I saw black. I was almost fainting,” he recalled, describing being beaten by crowds as he was dragged across the border into Gaza. Inside a tunnel, he said he saw the body of a dead Israeli soldier.

He was held underground for most of his captivity, moved between tunnels and safe houses, often denied food, and subjected to physical and psychological abuse. Guards treated him as if he were a soldier, he said, because of his age. “We were in a small cage, two mattresses. One tiny blanket,” he said.

At one point, Zangauker said he was forced to walk to Rafah, disguised among civilians. “We walked to Rafah on foot, accompanied by thousands of their residents,” he said. “IDF was nearby. It was next to a shoreline. We could hear the waves.” He recounted days spent in a mosque and later in a tent near the coast.

Zangauker said he was filmed repeatedly by Hamas for propaganda purposes. “For entire days,” he recalled. In one instance, he said he intervened to protect another hostage who was being beaten with a whip improvised from a refrigerator cable. “I had to step in. I took the blows instead.”

A turning point came when a tunnel commander recognized him and asked, “Are you Zangauker?” He told him, “Your mother is leading demonstrations; she’s turning the whole country upside down.” Zangauker said that seeing his mother, Einav’s, speeches on television gave him hope. “It made me very happy. It helped me,” he said. After that, guards became “more polite” and occasionally offered more food.

Zangauker lost hope as other hostages released in previous ceasefire deals

As negotiations progressed and other hostages were released, Zangauker said he sank into despair. “Then I really stayed alone, and it started to sink in that I wouldn’t get out of here. I’m going to die here,” he said. Twice, nearby Israeli airstrikes filled the tunnel with gas, he recalled, after explosions struck close to where he was being held.

Even as his release approached, Zangauker said he did not believe it was happening until he was placed in a Red Cross vehicle and taken toward the Israeli border. “It was crazy. A moment that doesn’t sink in,” he said, describing how he saluted IDF soldiers and was reunited with his family.

Since returning home, he has dismissed conspiracy theories spreading online suggesting he received luxuries or cash during captivity. “Completely stupid,” he said. “I endured hell.”