When Israelis held hostage by terrorists in Gaza are released, there is a flurry of attention. Members of the media descend on the hospitals to which the newly freed hostages are sent. Dozens of photos of the former hostages and their families are disseminated from the hospitals. Siblings and other relatives give interviews about the returnees’ medical conditions and what they said about their treatment in Gaza. 

Soon after, however, the public no longer hears much from most of them. To be sure, some gave high-profile interviews, while others found themselves on red carpets. Some were cheered by whole soccer arenas. The divorce of one former hostage from her husband has turned into gossip fodder in Israel. But for the most part, their day-to-day struggles are not on the public’s radar, even as the former hostages’ recoveries from their physical and mental injuries continues.

Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva, in central Israel, has treated and continues to treat hostages released in the ceasefire that took place earlier this year: female soldiers Naama Levy, Karina Ariyev, Agam Berger, Liri Albag and Daniella Gilboa, as well as Tal Shoham, Omer Wenkert, Eliya Cohen and Omer Shemtov.

Dr. Michael Bahar, director of the Rehabilitation Unit at Beilinson, who has been overseeing their recovery, told Jewish Insider in the hospital this week that his department “built rehabilitation programs based on each patient’s specific needs. It’s a multidisciplinary process, working with physical therapists, occupational therapists, dieticians, nurses and psychologists. For the rehabilitation of the female soldiers, “we work with the IDF,” he added.

“It’s been three months, and for some it continues, and we’re always thinking about the next stage,” Bahar said. “Every day of treatment has a schedule, matching each patient’s needs — physical, cognitive and beyond.”

The returnees come to the hospital multiple times a week for treatments that range from more traditional medical appointments to working with dieticians to ensure they are eating properly after over 500 days of malnutrition to exercises that strengthen injured limbs and improve aerobic activity. 

Some of the treatments are in groups and include enjoyable but rehabilitative activities, such as cooking and dance classes. The returned hostages exercise using virtual reality headsets, and a ping-pong table was brought in at the request of one of the hostages, who then played with his family.

“They are accompanied by their psychologist, who plays a central role, because they can say when it’s too early to do something or if it’s the right time … They are starting to deal with participation in active lives in society, in school, with family,” Bahar said. The former hostages have had to consider whether the time is right to start working or studying, what kind of social activities they feel comfortable doing, whether they can drive and more.

The Rehabilitation Unit at Beilinson also treats many wounded soldiers, and Bahar said they and the former hostages have found it meaningful to undergo joint treatment and exercises together, including in the department’s pool.

“The soldiers felt that they were fighting to free the hostages, so we connected between them,” Bahar said. “One evening the [female soldier hostages] went to visit the wounded soldiers in the department. It was an indescribable moment. They couldn’t speak, they were so excited … It was very significant, very powerful for the soldiers and the returnees.”

Some of the hostages are still undergoing complex medical procedures, which they were given the option to delay. Freed hostage Romi Gonen, who was treated at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, shared this week that she is undergoing a second surgery on her hand.

Dr. Noa Eliakim-Raz, head of the Returnees Ward and one of Beilinson’s six internal medicine departments, said that the staff has made sure to treat the returnees as “free people with the right to choose” after a year and a half in which their freedom was violently taken from them.

“Medically, we thought it was good to postpone some procedures and to give them the right to decide. If they say they want to postpone in order to go abroad, we can let them prioritize and decide for themselves. It’s clear to them that we are here for them, whenever they need us,” she said.

Beilinson set up the Returnees Ward on a floor of the Schneider Children’s Medical Center, which is in the same complex as the larger hospital. The entrance is through a corridor decorated with a cartoon dinosaur mural, with glass sliding doors that few hospital employees are able to access. They open up to signs that say “Now you’re home,” “We’ve waited for this moment,” and feature psalms thanking God for their return.

The department was set up after the November 2023 ceasefire, in which 105 hostages — mostly women and children — were released. Beilinson treated seven adult returnees — six mothers and a grandmother — while their children released from captivity were cared for at Schneider, all in the same department.

“Once that ended, we realized that everyone else who would come back would be adults and we started to prepare to receive them,” Eliakim-Raz said. “We hoped we would not have much time, but we had a lot of time to prepare.”

The department has room for up to 12 hostages, though the most it has treated simultaneously is nine. Two hospital rooms were designated for each returnee, one for the former hostage and another for family to sleep next door. Lounges were set up for the returnees to spend time together and to receive guests, including one with a sweeping view of the hospital campus, including the helipad on which the freed hostages arrived. A closet was filled with supplies the families may have forgotten to bring them: sweatsuits and pajamas, fluffy towels, slippers and flip-flops, stuffed animals, markers and paper — and lice removal shampoo.

Over time, Eliakim-Raz and her team compiled a medical protocol of hundreds of pages to prepare for the hostages’ return, listening to the testimony of those who already returned and poring over medical papers about other hostage situations, like in the Yom Kippur War, and Holocaust survivors. They also performed simulations of handling a group of freed hostages.

“So much changed, because being a hostage for 50 days is not like being there for over a year,” she said. “The preparation was complex. Soldiers male and female have different needs, there are other areas of care for young women, and much older adults have totally different problems. We prepared for every population and every scenario we could think of.” 

“Every discipline involved needed to know what to prepare for, what it means psychologically and physically. The dieticians had to think about what they would encounter in someone who spent 550 days underground … What effect does a lack of stimuli have on younger and older people,” Eliakim-Raz said. 

Dr. Michal Steinman, director of nursing at Beilinson, said that they also considered what being kept underground for long periods of time would mean, and whether the returnees would need dimmer lights or special glasses. They also thought they may need to help the returnees adapt to a more normal sleep schedule, though she found that “each one managed to keep track of time in their way. It was an amazing survival instinct, but it had psychological and bodily consequences.”

Steinman said she is “used to working on evidence-based medicine, but here we had to work based on clues. We examined the stories we heard and read and had to think of different variations to prepare. It was detective work.”

“We were well-prepared, but the real moment was indescribable,” Steinman said of the hostages’ arrival.

Each time hostages landed on the helipad in Beilinson, Eliakim-Raz said she “tried to give them a feeling of a home, more than a hospital. It’s a sort of warm capsule between captivity and home … It gives a lot of security. They are protected here. We didn’t let media in, and only people they wanted to see could be here. It was very closely managed.” 

Steinman said the hospital’s treatment also extended to the hostages’ relatives, who in some cases had neglected their own health and underwent examinations by the doctors at Beilinson. Steinman and a mental health professional held nightly group meetings with the parents of the hostages when they were staying in the hospital, to answer questions about their children’s health.

“The public is excited about the hugs and kisses” when the hostages are reunited with their families, Eliakim-Raz said, “but the real difficult stage is at the end of the process when they have to go home.”

The continued outpatient rehabilitation program gives the returnees “continuity,” Bahar said. “They went back home but are still in this very safe environment.” 

The medical literature about Holocaust survivors and Yom Kippur War prisoners of war who returned to Israel shows that those who are back from Gaza are likely to have long-term risks to their health.

“We see [in the literature] PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder], depression and dangerous behaviors,” Eliakim-Raz said. “The body remembers and we don’t understand how, but it is in a more inflamed state than their peers. That can impact metabolic symptoms and cause a higher rate of strokes … I hope that they will have nothing and be healthy and happy, but the literature says that chances are that is not what’s going to happen.”

“If we don’t continue to reach out [to the hostages] now, maybe no one will make that connection in the future. They deserve that someone will examine them. We want to continue — they deserve that … We are going to actively invite them to checkup days and bring them in as a group to try to catch things early,” she said.

Like many Israelis, Steinman continues to try to follow what her patients are up to through the media. 

“When I see them on TV, I’m so excited,” she said. “The group we met are inspirational. They went through a very difficult captivity and returned with a strong enough foundation to be rehabilitated and build a quality life. The scars will remain, but they all have great mental strength.” 

That being said, the hostages who stayed at Beilinson all expressed forms of survivors’ guilt.

“They don’t feel ready to be fully rehabilitated until their friends get out” of Gaza, Eliakim-Raz said.

Meanwhile, the team at Beilinson is preparing in case they are entrusted with the care of some of the 20 remaining living hostages when they are released. Nurses check the medications in the department every week to make sure they aren’t expired, and the clothing to see that it fits the season.

Steinman said that recent hostage talks and the hope that the remaining hostages will be freed “takes me back to the long time we waited before … We’re back in the days of anticipation, and I don’t know when it will happen. For the 500 days of preparation before [the ceasefire that began in January], it was an emotional time. Sometimes we despaired.”

Steinman and Eliakim-Raz said that they put off travel plans because they don’t want to miss the hostages coming home: “This is where I need to be,” Steinman said.

“Everyone is waiting to see them return — though you can’t compare it to the families. For us, as a medical team, there is anticipation … We knew what to do and we did it well, and we want to do it again,” she added.

In a letter to President Donald Trump, a bipartisan group of House members renewed calls for a deal to release all of the remaining hostages held in Gaza, including the bodies of four Americans believed to be deceased, urging him to capitalize on potential momentum from the release of Israeli American hostage Edan Alexander earlier this month.

Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said on Wednesday that the administration would soon put forward a “new term sheet” for a potential ceasefire, expressing confidence about reaching a long-elusive deal.

“Building on the momentum of Edan’s release, we strongly urge your Administration to press forward with all available diplomatic efforts to secure the return of all hostages—including the four remaining Americans: Omer Neutra, Itay Chen, Gadi Haggai, and Judi Weinstein Haggai,” the House letter reads.

“While Edan’s return marks a critical breakthrough, the suffering he endured underscores the urgency of this mission,” the letter continues. “Those still in captivity continue to face unimaginable hardship, and we owe it to them and their families to do everything in our power to secure their release. This moment — coming in the wake of Edan’s homecoming — offers a window of opportunity.”

Witkoff said earlier this week that there is a deal on the table to release half of the living and half of the deceased hostages in exchange for a temporary ceasefire of unspecified length before negotiations to free the remaining hostages. Witkoff said Hamas has offered a “completely unacceptable” response.

“We urge you to continue using every diplomatic tool available, in close coordination with our regional allies and partners, to press for the release of all hostages,” the House letter continues. “Edan’s return has brought renewed hope to the nation — and to the close-knit community of Tenafly, New Jersey. Now, we must act swiftly to ensure that hope is realized for every hostage and every waiting community.”

The lawmakers highlighted the physical and mental torture that Alexander endured in Gaza, which many of the hostages still in captivity continue to endure. They thanked the Trump and Biden administrations and others involved in ongoing hostage negotiations and in freeing Alexander.

The letter was led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and co-signed by Reps. Young Kim (R-CA), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Laura Gillen (D-NY), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Maria Salazar (R-FL), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Val Hoyle (D-OR), Greg Stanton (D-AZ), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Tom Kean (R-NJ), Don Bacon (R-NE), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Laura Friedman (D-CA), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Seth Moulton (D-MA), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Kim Schrier (D-WA), Gabe Amo (D-RI), Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ), French Hill (R-AR) and Herb Conaway (D-NJ).

A group of 41 pro-Israel House Democrats released a statement on Wednesday praising the resumption of humanitarian aid to Gaza as helping to refocus international attention on releasing the hostages and calling for a comprehensive plan for postwar Gaza.

The statement, first shared with Jewish Insider, argues that the renewed delivery of aid, which began on Monday, was “essential to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, so that the primary focus of the international community can return to releasing the hostages that remain in captivity.”

“We strongly believe that there can be no lasting peace while Hamas remains in power. Its tyrannical rule over Gaza must end. To achieve that objective, the United States, Israel, and key Arab partners must agree upon a serious and credible political and security plan to govern Gaza after the war,” the lawmakers added. “Then, with the hostages returned and Hamas removed from power, the rebuilding process can begin to ensure lasting peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike.”

The statement highlights that Israel has facilitated the entry of 1.78 million tons of aid into Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, and states that aid “must be disbursed swiftly and safely to Palestinian civilians and not Hamas, which has been stealing aid since the start of the war.”

It notes that Hamas continues to hold 58 hostages, saying, “Every day that goes by without the hostages’ release is a dagger in the hearts of their families.”

“We call on President Trump and his administration to do everything within their power to secure the release of the hostages, facilitate the disbursement of aid, and bring a swift end to the war,” the statement concludes.

The statement was organized by Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), in cooperation with Democratic Majority for Israel.

The statement was co-signed by Reps. Haley Stevens (D-MI), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Dina Titus (D-NV), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) Don Davis (D-NC), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Wesley Bell (D-MO), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Angie Craig (D-MN), Hillary Scholten (D-MI), Grace Meng (D-NY), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Greg Stanton (D-AZ), George Latimer (D-NY), Emilia Sykes (D-OH), Sarah Elfreth (D-MD), Mike Levin (D-CA), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Jim Costa (D-CA), Laura Friedman (D-CA), Laura Gillen (D-NY), Sarah McBride (D-DE), Marilyn Strickland (D-WA), Josh Riley (D-NY) and Janelle Bynum (D-OR), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Marc Veasey (D-TX), Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) and Ted Lieu (D-CA).

“This statement from 41 congressional Democrats, spearheaded by DMFI, reflects a clear-eyed understanding of the moral and strategic imperatives at stake in the continuing Israel–Hamas war,” DMFI President Brian Romick said in a statement. “Hamas’s continued captivity of 58 hostages after some 600 days, including the remains of American citizens, is a humanitarian outrage that demands the world’s attention. At the same time, aid intended for Palestinian civilians must not be diverted by Hamas to fuel terror and prolong this devastating war.”

“Their voices send a powerful message: the United States must remain steadfast in its commitment to our ally Israel, to the return of the hostages — both living and dead — and to a post-conflict vision that rejects terror and embraces peace,” Romick continued.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a shift, said in a House Appropriations Committee hearing on Wednesday that Israel’s 11-week blockade of aid into Gaza was damaging Israel’s national security and international standing and that U.S. pressure had contributed to Israel’s decision to release the hold. He also said that current levels of aid entering Gaza are not sufficient.

The remarks are strikingly similar to comments made since the beginning of the war in Gaza by Democrats, particularly progressives, who have criticized Israel’s policy toward aid to Gaza, and stand in contrast with Rubio’s and other Republicans’ previous comments arguing against allowing aid to flow back into Gaza.

“In the interim period, the one thing we’ve made abundantly clear is that the humanitarian situation — and I think this was acknowledged by the prime minister in his statement — the humanitarian situation, the direction that it was headed was undermining Israel’s standing and national security,” Rubio said.

He added that the Israelis had “acknowledged in their own statement that … the intervention of the United States and others is the reason why they’ve started to allow aid, albeit … not at the levels that are necessary.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged in a press conference on Wednesday, his first to Israeli media in five months, that friends of Israel, including U.S. senators, have said they support Israel in its war against Hamas but they have concerns regarding the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Rubio said that U.S. officials, including Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, are actively working to ensure that additional aid is provided “because, as we said, we were concerned about the conditions and the directions that they were headed.”

Throughout the post-Oct. 7 period, Rubio had argued repeatedly as a member of the Senate that any additional aid provided to Gaza “would go directly to Hamas and would be controlled by them,” concerns he again acknowledged in the hearing on Wednesday and other appearances on the Hill this week.

He said repeatedly that he spoke last weekend with Cindy McCain, who leads the World Food Program, about the WFP’s aid distribution mechanisms in Gaza. Israeli and U.S. officials have been working to implement alternative aid delivery processes rather than rely on U.N. agencies.

Rubio reiterated that the administration fully supports Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas and that there is no future for the people of Gaza as long as Hamas is in power. He said he has “some level of optimism that we may have a breakthrough” in efforts to end the war and free the hostages “pretty quickly.”

But, Rubio continued, “I have felt that way now at least four separate times in the last couple of months, and for one reason or another, at the last minute, it didn’t happen, and so I don’t want to be disappointed on it again.”

The United Kingdom, France and Canada threatened on Monday to take “concrete actions” and impose sanctions against Israel if it does not change its policies on humanitarian aid and the war in Gaza, as well as settlements in the West Bank.

The statement from the three countries came in response to Israel’s announcement that it had begun an escalation in the fighting in Gaza, while allowing in a limited amount of food, 11 weeks after blocking all aid in an attempt to pressure Hamas to free more hostages.

The countries said they “strongly oppose the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering is intolerable. Israel’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable and risks breaching International Humanitarian Law.”

In addition, they said that the “basic quantity of food” to be allowed into Gaza “is wholly inadequate,” and that Israel must work with United Nations agencies. Israel and the U.S. have been working on an alternative mechanism to distribute aid rather than rely on U.N. agencies, which have not prevented Hamas from pocketing large quantities of aid and in some cases employed Hamas terrorists.

“If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response,” the statement reads.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said in an interview with French radio station France Inter on Tuesday that “further concrete actions” could include supporting a push led by the Netherlands to cancel the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which would in effect downgrade relations between Jerusalem and Brussels. Canada and the U.K. would not be involved, as they are not EU member states.

France, the U.K. and Canada also spoke out against Israeli settlements in the West Bank, calling them illegal and saying they “will not hesitate to take further action, including sanctions.”  

In addition, they called to work towards a two-state solution, arguing that it is “the only way to bring long-lasting peace and security that both Israelis and Palestinians deserve.” 

The three countries said they “have always supported Israel’s right to defend Israelis against terrorism” and called on Hamas to release the 58 hostages held since Oct. 7, 2023, at least 20 of whom are thought to be alive.

A second statement from 23 countries, including most of the EU, plus Australia, Canada, the U.K., New Zealand, Norway and Japan, also called on Israel to “allow a full resumption of aid into Gaza immediately” and enable U.N. agencies to distribute it, and called for a two-state solution. The EU countries that did not sign the letter were Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Romania and Slovakia.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded that “the leaders in London, Ottawa and Paris are offering a huge prize for the genocidal attack on Israel on October 7 while inviting more such atrocities.”

“Israel accepts President [Donald] Trump’s vision and urges all European leaders to do the same,” he added. ”The war can end tomorrow if the remaining hostages are released, Hamas lays down its arms, its murderous leaders are exiled and Gaza is demilitarized. No nation can be expected to accept anything less and Israel certainly won’t. This is a war of civilization over barbarism. Israel will continue to defend itself by just means until total victory is achieved.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar shared on X a screenshot of a press release in which Hamas welcomed the countries’ threat, and added: “What a disgrace.”

French President Emmanuel Macron has been increasingly critical of Israel in recent weeks, calling Israel’s Gaza policies “shameful” and saying the EU should consider revoking its free trade agreement with Israel, to which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded that Macron is standing with Hamas. France is also spearheading, together with Saudi Arabia, a high-level meeting at the U.N. next month calling for a two-state solution.

Marine Le Pen, president of the far-fight French party National Rally, told i24 News on Monday that she is “very concerned about the distance that Emmanuel Macron is creating with Israel, if I may put it this way, precisely at the worst possible time. At a time when Israel is fighting a war against terrorism, when it needs the support of its friends, and France has traditionally been a friendly country toward Israel.”