Freed Israeli hostage says she was kept in ‘suffocating’ room

A freed Israeli who was held hostage by the militant Palestinian group Hamas said she was kept in a “suffocating” room while the economic situation in Gaza deteriorated.

Ruti Munder, 78, told Israel’s Channel 13 television that she initially ate well while captured, according to The Associated Press. Munder was taken hostage Oct. 7 alongside her husband, daughter and grandson.

Initially, they were fed “chicken with rice, all sorts of canned food and cheese,” Munder told Channel 13, according to The Associated Press. They also received tea in the morning and evening, and kids were given sweets. However, the food situation changed when “the economic situation was not good, and people were hungry.”

Munder was released from captivity Friday and was in good physical condition when freed.

Munder also said the captives slept on plastic chairs, according to The Associated Press. She said the room she was held in was “suffocating” and that the hostages were barred from opening blinds, but she was able to open a window.

“It was very difficult,” she said.

Since Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 Israelis and resulted in the hostages’ capture, Israeli military action has killed about 13,000 people in Gaza, according to health authorities in the territory run by Hamas, according to the AP.

The territory is facing a dire humanitarian situation, with food, water and fuel shortages amid mass infrastructure destruction.

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