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After months in chains and darkness, freed Hamas hostages begin their long road to recovery

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After months in chains and darkness, freed Hamas hostages begin their long road to recovery

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — They will be treated for malnutrition, lack of sunlight and the trauma of wearing leg chains for months. They suffer from unexplained pain and unresolved emotions, and they will have to relearn how to make everyday decisions as simple as when to use the bathroom.

The last 20 living hostages released by Hamas are beginning a difficult path to recovery that will also include rebuilding a sense of control over their lives, according to Israeli health officials. Along the way, each one will be accompanied by a team of doctors, nurses, specialists and social workers to guide their reentry to society after two years of captivity in Gaza.

All of the hostages were in stable condition Monday following their release, and none required immediate intensive care.

“But what appears on the outside doesn’t reflect what’s going on internally,” explained Dr. Hagai Levine, the head of the health team for the Hostages Family Forum, who has been involved in medical care for returned hostages and their relatives.

The newly freed hostages will stay in the hospital for several days as they undergo tests, including a full psychiatric exam, according to protocols from the Israeli Ministry of Health. A nutritionist will guide them and their families on a diet to avoid refeeding syndrome, a dangerous medical condition that can develop after periods of starvation if food is reintroduced too quickly.

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Elkana Bohbot, an Israeli hostage released from the Gaza Strip waves walks off a helicopter at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

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Hostages emerged thin and pale

After previous releases, some hostages and their families chose to stay together in a hotel north of Tel Aviv for a few weeks to get used to their new reality. Others returned home immediately after their discharge from the hospital.

All of the hostages who emerged Monday were exceptionally thin and pale, the likely result of enduring long periods without enough food, Levine said.

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The lack of sunlight and nutrition can lead to issues with the kidneys, liver and cognition, as well as osteoporosis. Many hostages wore leg chains for their entire captivity, which can lead to orthopedic problems, muscle waste and blood clots.

Elkana Bohbot told his family he suffers from pain all over his body, especially his back, feet and stomach due to force-feeding, according to Israeli television’s Channel 12.

“Ahead of his release, he received food in large portions so he will look a bit better for the world,” Rebecca Bohbot, Elkana’s wife, told reporters Tuesday from the hospital.

Some hostages who previously returned had minor strokes in captivity that were not treated, Levine said. Many also had infections and returned with severely compromised immune systems, which is why the number of visitors should be kept to a minimum, Levine said. He denounced politicians’ visits to the hostages as both unnecessary and potentially dangerous. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited five hostages Tuesday evening and was diagnosed Wednesday with bronchitis.

“Previously released hostages were told they look ‘pretty good,’ but some needed surgeries that were very complicated. Some had constant pain. Many have all types of pains that they are not able to explain, but it’s really impacting their quality of life,” Levine said.

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Levine said Israel also learned from the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, when more than 60 Israeli soldiers were held for six months in Syria. Many of them later developed cancer, cardiovascular problems and accelerated aging and were at risk for early death.

The war began when Hamas-led militants burst across the Israeli border, killing around 1,200 people and kidnapping 251. The fighting has killed more than 67,600 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government. The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts. It does not say how many of the deaths were civilians or combatants.

Ziv Berman, an Israeli hostage released from the Gaza Strip gestures from a minibus at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Ziv Berman, an Israeli hostage released from the Gaza Strip gestures from a minibus at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Restoring a sense of autonomy

The most important step for returning hostages is to help them regain a sense of control, explained Einat Yehene, a clinical neuropsychologist and the head of rehabilitation for the Hostages Families Forum. Many of the hostages were brought straight from Hamas tunnels, seeing sunlight for the first time in nearly two years, she said.

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“I’m happy to see the sun. I’m happy to see the trees. I saw the sea. You have no idea how precious that is,” Elkana Bohbot told his family, according to Israeli media.

“Stimulation-wise and autonomy-wise, it’s really overwhelming,” Yehene said. “Someone is asking you a question — do you need to go to the bathroom? Would you like to eat something? These are questions they never heard for two years.”

Hostages’ sense of autonomy can be jump-started by allowing them to make small decisions. According to protocol, everyone treating them must ask their permission for each thing, no matter how small, including turning off a light, changing bedsheets or conducting medical tests.

Some returned hostages are terrified of the physical sensation of thirst because it makes them feel as if they are still in captivity, Yehene said. Others cannot spend time on their own, requiring a family member to be present around the clock.

Among the hostages who have experienced the smoothest integration from long-term captivity were those who were fathers, Levine said, though it took some time to rebuild trust with their young children.

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“It’s a facilitator of recovery because it forces them to get back into the role of father,” Levine said. None of the women held in captivity for long periods of time were mothers.

Gali Berman, carries a placard reading in Hebrew

Gali Berman, carries a placard reading in Hebrew “The People of Israel Live,” as he sits onboard an IAF helicopter en route to the hospital after being released from Hamas captivity, on Monday, Oct. 13, 2025. (IDF via AP)

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The world starts ‘to move again’

The first few days after being released, the hostages are in a state of euphoria, though many feel guilty for the pain their families have been through, Yehene said.

For those who saw little media and have no idea what happened in Israel, people should take care to expose them to information slowly, she added.

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Yehene said she also saw an immediate psychological response from hostages who were released in previous ceasefires after Monday’s release. Many of the previously released hostages have been involved in the struggle to return the last hostages and said they were unable to focus on their own recovery until now.

“I see movement from frozen emotions and frozen trauma,” Yehene said. “You don’t feel guilty anymore. You don’t feel responsible.”

Iair Horn was released from captivity in February, but it did not feel real until Monday, when his younger brother, Eitan, was finally freed.

“About eight months ago, I came home. But the truth is that only today am I truly free,” Horn said, sobbing as he spoke from the hospital where his brother is being evaluated. Only now that Eitan is back “is my heart, our heart, whole again.”

Liran Berman is the brother of twins Gali and Ziv Berman, who were also released.

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“For 738 days, our lives were trapped between hope and fear,” Liran Berman said. “Yesterday that chapter ended. Seeing Gali and Ziv again, holding them after so long, was like feeling the world start to move again.”

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‘Criminal Minds’ Star Paget Brewster Tells TV Journalist to ‘Work at a Shelter’ After Mixed Review, Sparking Outrage From Other Critics

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‘Criminal Minds’ Star Paget Brewster Tells TV Journalist to ‘Work at a Shelter’ After Mixed Review, Sparking Outrage From Other Critics

“Criminal Minds” star Paget Brewster lashed out at ScreenRant staffer Shealyn Scott over X on Saturday afternoon for her story lamenting the changes Paramount+ has brought to the long-running procedural drama.

“Hello critic Shealynn Scott,” Brewster wrote in the since-deleted post. “You’re young. You don’t know that bad pics and bad reviews can lead to 350 people losing their jobs. Sell vintage. Work at a shelter. Do something better than what you do now. Because right now you suck.”

Film and TV critics were quick to hit back in the replies. David Rooney, chief film critic at The Hollywood Reporter, wrote in his response to Brewster, “This is a very bad look. An actor on a long-running show attacking a young reviewer who contextualizes her respectful criticisms with obvious knowledge of the material — says way more about u being thin-skinned than it does about her professionalism. ‘Work at a shelter,’ really?!”

Senior ScreenRant writer Andy Behbakht also came to the defense of Scott, writing, “This is disgusting behavior on your part, and really tragic to see you tearing down a young female journalist whom you are literally telling that she ‘sucks’ and that she shouldn’t be in the field that she is in. I stand by my colleague, and you owe her an apology.”

Brewster released an apology for the post on Sunday. She wrote on X, “Hi guys, I was mean to Shealyn Scott last night and I profoundly regret it. Shame on me for insulting a human being for doing their job. I’m very sorry, Shealyn. And I’m sorry to those who follow me that you saw me behave like that. Turns out, last night, I sucked.”

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“Criminal Minds” premiered its 15th and final season on CBS in 2020, and then was revived for Paramount+ in 2022 under the title “Criminal Minds: Evolution.” Scott’s piece discussed the changes “Criminal Minds” underwent when it went from linear to streaming.

“From details as small as a ratings change to TV-MA— which allows David Rossi (Joe Mantegna) and Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) the occasional heated expletive— to new main cast members like Tyler Green (Ryan-James Hatanaka), there’s no doubt that ‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’ has its own unique identity,” Scott wrote in her story. “Plenty of the continuation’s changes have been received warmly, and ‘Criminal Minds’ unquestionably still works as a gripping crime drama, but there are just as many tweaks that feel more like downgrades— including the new 10-episode season structure. Though logical in theory, the shortened seasons are unfortunately working against ‘Criminal Minds’’ greatest strengths.”

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Meloni’s spat with Trump is calculated strategy to boost her approval ratings: expert

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Meloni’s spat with Trump is calculated strategy to boost her approval ratings: expert

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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s escalating feud with President Donald Trump is nothing but a calculated political strategy aimed at boosting her standing at home, a leading Italian political analyst told Fox News Digital on Sunday.

After the row between Trump and Meloni escalated on June 20, analysts also said the Italian leader may see little downside in confronting Trump, particularly as she faces declining approval ratings ahead of Italy’s 2027 general election.

The diplomatic dispute had reached a boiling point after Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced June 19 that he was scrapping a trip to Washington, where he had been scheduled to meet Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

“Giorgia Meloni must have calculated that a public row with Trump yields no tangible consequences, other than an increase in her domestic and international standing,” Mattia Diletti, a political science lecturer at Sapienza University of Rome, said.

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TRUMP SAYS MELONI ‘WANTS TO BE FRIENDS AGAIN’ AFTER ITALY REFUSED TO HELP US AMID IRAN WAR

Giorgia Meloni said President Trump’s statements were “completely made up” and that “neither I nor Italy ever beg.” (Mandel NGAN / POOL / AFP via Getty Images; Bastien Ohier / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images))

Giovanni Orsina, a political scientist at Rome’s Luiss University, also told the Financial Times that the row would offer a “positive image” for Meloni and a “silver lining” to a confrontation she had “desperately tried to avoid.”

The friction between Trump and Meloni intensified after an interview broadcast by Italy’s La7 television network, where the president claimed she had asked for a photograph with him at the G7 summit and that he agreed only out of pity.

“She begged me to take a picture with her,” Trump said. “She wanted a picture with me so badly. I wouldn’t have taken it, but I felt sorry for her.”

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RUBIO MEETS MELONI AS TRUMP–POPE CLASH CLASH ESCALATES US STRAINS WITH KEY EUROPEAN ALLY

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends her annual press conference in Rome on Jan. 9, 2026, addressing government priorities and policy challenges for the year ahead. (Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)

Meloni fired back, releasing a video statement on X rejecting the president’s narrative.

“I am frankly stunned,” Meloni said in the video message. “I don’t know why the president of the United States behaves this way toward his own allies. But there’s one thing he must remember: Neither I nor Italy ever beg.”

Trump doubled down on Truth Social and tied the row directly to Meloni’s political fortunes.

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“Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni asked, over and over, for a picture with me during the G7 meeting in France,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“She is doing poorly in Italy with her level of popularity, possibly because she turned down the United States of America… when it came to denying Iran from obtaining or developing a nuclear weapon … She wouldn’t even let us use Italy’s landing strips or runways, a great logistical inconvenience … Now, after the United States defeated Iran militarily, she wants to be friends again in order to get her ‘numbers up.’ No thanks!!!”

Within hours, Meloni responded on social media: “As for my popularity, being your friend certainly has not helped it … My popularity depends on my ability to defend Italy’s national interest… In any case, my popularity is none of your concern. I suggest you focus on yours.”

TRUMP ‘RIGHT TO BE OUTRAGED’ BY EUROPE’S BETRAYAL ON IRAN, SAYS FORMER THATCHER ADVISOR

Rubio will travel to Italy on Wednesday for meetings with Pope Leo and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. (Maria Grazia Picciarella/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

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The back-and-forth marks a reversal for two leaders who once enjoyed a close political alignment.

When Meloni first came to power, she positioned herself as a bridge between Washington and Brussels while pushing ties with Trump based on shared nationalism and stances on immigration.

“Politically, Trump has favored Meloni,” Diletti noted, pointing out that she had previously visited Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in 2025. She was the only European Union leader to attend his second inauguration.

The cracks also appeared in April when Trump criticized Meloni for siding with Pope Leo XIV’s condemnation of the U.S. conflict with Iran.

On Sunday, Trump also criticized Italy and Giorgia Meloni over their approach to Iran, accusing the NATO ally of failing to help confront Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

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“As the 2027 Italian general election approaches, Meloni is facing a decline in approval ratings for the first time,” Diletti explained.

“The opportunity to counter a President so unpopular in Europe and Italy helps bolster her approval ratings and allows her to build European solidarity,” he claimed.

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Mourners gather to remember Lebanese conservationist killed by Israel

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Mourners gather to remember Lebanese conservationist killed by Israel

Renowned turtle conservationist Mona Khalil had been wounded in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon.

Mourners have gathered in Beirut to pay their respects to a much-loved Lebanese conservationist who died from wounds caused by an Israeli strike on her home on the country’s southern coast.

Mona Khalil, 77, who spent more than two decades protecting sea turtles along Lebanon’s coastline, was critically injured in the attack in the village of al-Mansouri in Tyre province on June 4 and succumbed to her wounds more than two weeks later, on Friday.

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News of her death triggered an outpouring of grief among environmentalists and those who volunteered and worked with her over the years, many of whom gathered in Beirut on Sunday.

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The Orange House Project, which Khalil helped build into a small conservation hub and ecotourism site in al-Mansouri, became a refuge for endangered loggerhead and green sea turtles and a training ground for volunteers documenting nesting activity along the coast.

Khalil was born in Lagos, Nigeria, in 1949. She held Dutch as well as Lebanese citizenship, having lived in the Netherlands before returning to Lebanon and settling in what had once been her grandmother’s home – the building that would later become known as the Orange House.

At the heart of Khalil’s work was a narrow stretch of coastline, al-Mansouri beach, where a fleeting encounter with a turtle that had emerged from the ocean to lay its eggs in 1999 propelled her on a lifelong journey devoted to animals.

Each nesting season, Khalil and volunteers would patrol the beach at night, marking fresh tracks in the sand and carefully relocating vulnerable nests away from human activity and coastal light pollution.

Journalist and environmental activist Fadia Jomaa first met Khalil in 2016 while researching sea turtles in Lebanon and then decided to volunteer with her project.

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During the previous war between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah in 2024, Khalil initially refused to leave al-Mansouri beach, Jomaa said. The Lebanese army ultimately persuaded her to evacuate for her safety.

“She was the last one to leave the area,” Jomaa noted.

“She had an awful time in Beirut,” the journalist said, adding that Khalil longed to return to the south, to the Orange House and the beach she had spent years protecting.

“She used to say, ‘My soul will stay here,’” Jomaa said, recalling conversations in which Khalil would point to an olive tree or a small hill overlooking al-Mansouri beach. “She used to say, ‘This is where you will bury me.’”

Where Khalil will ultimately be buried remains uncertain and is tied to the security situation in the area, Jomaa said.

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