Two years of chains, torture, and isolation: What is known about the hostages’ time in captivity?

Some hostages spent the entire two years isolated, and kept in the dark on the welfare of their families after October 7.

After two years in Hamas captivity, the newly released hostages shared a little information about the hardships imposed on them during their time in Gaza, Israeli media reported on Monday night.

The Cunio brothers

Ariel Cunio was reportedly held alone for his captivity, according to Channel 12, while his brother David was held with Nimrod Cohen and Eitan Horn in multiple tunnels across the Gaza Strip.

While in the tunnels, David Cunio was denied access to any media. It was only during a brief encounter with Yarden Bibas, after the Hamas video was filmed of them, that David learned his twin brother, Eitan Cunio, survived October 7.

Gali and Ziv Berman

Gali and Ziv Berman were held separately and cut off from all media access, Channel 12 reported. The pair were said to have been held in the same city and were not told that they would finally be reunited today.

Terrorists reportedly spoke Hebrew to both men during their captivity.

Elkana Bohbot

Elkana Bohbot spent most of his time in captivity, chained in tunnels, where he lost all sense of time and space.

Bohbot told his family on his wedding anniversary that he had asked a guard to allow him to shower. The Hamas guard initially denied his request and demanded he sit back down, but eventually relented and allowed him to clean himself.

Matan Angrest

Matan Angrest was treated for injuries to his fingers and hands without anaesthesia, causing further medical problems, N12 reported.

Unlike other hostages, Matan was allowed to occasionally watch media clips of Hostages’ Square, where he heard his loved ones speak.

Avinatan Or

Avinatan Or, who was reunited with his loved ones on Monday, was held in a camp in central Gaza. It was here the terrorists starved him and where, according to an initial medical report, he lost between 30-40% of his bodyweight, N12 reported.

Avinatan was completely isolated from other hostages and was told very little about what happened in Israel following Hamas’s invasion.

Evyatar David

Evyatar David‘s father told Israeli media that his son had experienced both psychological and physical abuse during captivity. He was separated from fellow hostage Guy Gilboa-Dalal two months ago.

Alon Ohel

Alon Ohel was chained in the same tunnel for almost the entire two years he was in captivity, and moved only once to a new tunnel 40 days ago, Channel 12 reported.

Alon was moved unexpectedly to the new tunnel located in the center of the Gaza Strip after hours of journeying. The IDF reported that the move was to use him as a human shield to prevent the military from taking over the city.