The Israeli hostages released by Hamas suffered severe malnutrition, muscle loss, and a weight loss of 40% of their total body weight, the Israeli Health Ministry said Wednesday.
Hamas last week handed over the remains of four more Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners as part of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
They are the last four to be released during the first phase of the truce, which ended Saturday. Israel and Hamas have yet to negotiate the next phase, and dozens of hostages are still held in Gaza.
Hamas-led militants took 251 hostages during their Oct. 7, 2023, attack that launched the current war in Gaza. Fifty-nine hostages remain in Gaza, roughly half of who are believed to be dead. The others were released in previous agreements, rescued or their bodies were recovered.
Dr. Hagar Mizrahi, head of the Health Ministry's medical division, told reporters the hostages suffered extreme malnutrition, severe muscle loss and vitamin deficiencies.
"In some cases, this led to muscle bleeding, causing significant pain and even affecting hemoglobin levels," Mizrahi said.
"We are seeing the effects of long-term malnutrition, which requires continued medical and rehabilitative care."
Doctors detected "a significant drop in essential vitamins, including vitamin C, which, in at least one case, caused spontaneous muscle bleeding," Mizrahi said.
"Their diets were severely lacking in protein, fats, vegetables and fruits. Some survived on empty carbohydrates that provided little to no nutritional value."
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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