The three latest hostages who were released from Gaza after 491 days of captivity are suffering from severe physical and mental deterioration, including malnutrition, decreased muscle mass, heart disorders, and prolonged infection, according to health officials quoted by Hebrew media on Sunday.

Outlets also shared initial testimony from the three, citing conversations in which their family members said that the former hostages all endured physical and psychological abuse during their captivity.

Or Levy, Ohad Ben Ami and Eli Sharabi were released by the Hamas terror group Saturday looking gaunt and unsteady on their feet, 16 months after they were kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri and the Nova music festival in the October 7, 2023, onslaught.

Health officials quoted by the Ynet news site noted that some injuries after prolonged exposure to harsh conditions are not immediately visible.

Levy and Sharabi were being treated at Sheba Medical Center, while Ben Ami was admitted to Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center.

Sheba director Yael Nir-Frankel said the consequences of “491 long days in captivity are evident on the two returnees… To hold people in captivity for so long means a deterioration of their condition.”

Reacting to difficult images of the three men returning to Israel, families of hostages and thousands of supporters around the country took to the streets demanding that the government see the ongoing deal with Hamas through to its latter stages to ensure the release of all those still held captive in Gaza.

According to Channel 12 news, the former captives were often given only a quarter of a pita per day to eat, and there were periods when they were only allowed to relieve themselves twice a day, at specific times.

The television outlet reported that Levy, 34, was held with other hostages for the entirety of his captivity in Gaza, mainly in the terror group’s tunnels.

He showered only every few months and was barefoot for 491 days, wearing shoes for the first time on Saturday morning, according to the report.

Levy was not sure until Saturday that his wife Eynav was killed on October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists attacked the Nova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im. Their now 3-year-old son Almog has been with his grandparents since Levy was kidnapped and........

© The Times of Israel