From the Liveblog of
Sunday, February 9, 2025
Family: Or Levy had no connection with outside world, asked that another hostage be freed instead of him
Or Levy has told his family that the tunnel in which he was held was narrow and low, and he was unable to stand upright.
In testimony reported by Channel 12, Levy says his captors abused him psychologically by repeatedly telling him that he was about to be freed. They also staged manipulative events in which they pretended that he or other hostages were going to be freed, including despicable “games” in which they told one hostage they would be freed, and another that they would not.
The terrorists also insisted that he was a soldier, and interrogated him harshly.
Levy says he was able to count the days and kept track of when his toddler son Almog’s birthday was, and marked it in captivity.
Unlike some other hostages, Levy and other hostages held with him were allowed no connection with the outside world and knew nothing about the public struggle being waged for their release.
Levy has told his family that yesterday morning, ahead of his release, he asked that a different hostage be freed instead of him, and that it was extremely difficult for him to leave the others behind.
Ahead of his release, the terrorists took some of the hostages from place to place, to be displayed to cheering, singing terrorists.
One of Levy’s relatives tells Channel 12 that the family was “deeply shocked” to hear government sources expressing surprise at the sight of the emaciated hostages. The relative notes that the family was told by Israeli officials several months ago that the slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar had given instructions to starve and abuse the male hostages. They ask: “So how can you claim you did not know?”
Channel 12 also says that the three hostages freed yesterday were told 10 days ago that they were going to be released. Their captives made one of them put on a military uniform and ordered him to say on camera that he is a soldier. They explained that the more hostages who say they were soldiers, the more terrorists they can get released in exchange.
The three had very little to eat in captivity, and there were long days when they were given nothing at all to eat, the TV report says.
The three were not always held in tunnels, but even when not, they were held in small areas with little air and no daylight. They were allowed to shower only rarely and often had to get on the good side of the terrorists in order to be allowed to go to the toilet more than once a day.
Channel 12 notes that many of the hostages freed earlier in the current deal have also said they are extremely surprised at the professed shock among Israeli officials over the condition of the three hostages freed yesterday. They, too, were starved and abused in captivity, they have said, and returned in the same condition as those freed yesterday.
Several of them have also said that there were many times during their captivity when they feared that they were about to be killed by their captors.
