Hostages are starving: Israel’s Health Ministry begs Red Cross for help

Dr. Hagar Mizrahi, head of the medical division at the Health Ministry, addressed the medical condition of recently freed captives today (Wednesday) and expressed concern to the Red Cross about their inadequate nutrition while in captivity.

“Ensure the hostages receive proper nutrition, including complete food components, as well as vitamin supplements,” Dr. Mizrahi urged. “I’m worried that the longer we delay, the more their medical condition will deteriorate and worsen. They need to be brought back as quickly as possible.”

The head of the medical division went on to describe how most of the recent captivity survivors are suffering from extreme nutritional deficiencies. “Some of those returned have lost up to 40% of their body weight, accompanied by a loss of muscle mass—to the point of needing ongoing physiotherapy even after their release,” she said. Mizrahi emphasized that “even in cases where there wasn’t an apparent drop in body weight, there was still a loss of muscle mass.”

Dr. Mizrahi reported that the hostages are subsisting solely on carbohydrates and that the amount of food they receive is less than 50% of their required daily intake. “I’m troubled by the drop in blood vitamin levels,” she explained. “In many cases, they’re getting empty carbohydrates without protein or fat supplements, and they lack components like vegetables and fruits. It sounds minor, but it’s not—the medical consequences are clear.”

“Some of the released captives suffer from a deficiency in vitamin C, which plays many roles in the body. Its absence causes spontaneous bleeding within muscles, even leading to a drop in hemoglobin levels. These are processes that occurred during captivity before they reached Israel. The treatment provided is insufficient for these events. We see this in lab tests, even in cases where they might have occasionally received vitamins in captivity,” Dr. Mizrahi stated.