Many medical staff members at Sheba Medical Center were assigned to care for the four released captives Noa Argamani, Shlomi Ziv, Almog Meir Jan, and Andrey Kozlov after they were rescued from Gaza and returned to Israel. Mali Zander, head of the nursing department whose daughter Noa was murdered on October 7, was responsible for the four as soon as they arrived.
"In the first few hours, we didn't want to put pressure on them. These are hours more for family, friends and excitement, but from what I can tell they are all stable," said Zander late on Saturday night. "Some did lose weight, but only tomorrow we will start conducting various tests, and from past experience, in the coming days, we will only discover things."
Zander said that Almog, Shlomi and Andrey, who spent most of the last eight months together in captivity, are in a special ward set up for them and move around their rooms "as they have gotten used to living." Zander confirmed that although they have a private chef in the department who cooks healthy meals for them, one of the captives, Almog Meir Jan, requested the staff order him a laffa with shawarma.
Zander arrived at the department when the first reports about their release began to emerge. "The moment I heard, there was no question, I ran for supplies and arrived full of excitement," she shared. "Every encounter was joyful and moving, and we really hope there will be more events like this, where the entire staff wants to come and help. These are joyful moments and I believe that as soon as everyone returns, we will feel that something has truly been accomplished here, and we can build trust and move forward."
Zander, who is responsible for treating the four released captives after being kidnapped from the Nova party, could not help but remember her daughter Noa Zander, who had attended the Nova festival near Kibbutz Re'im, was murdered on October 7.
"At moments when I had a break, she crossed my mind. If Noa were kidnapped and returned, we as a family would support her. The world missed out on her. As a family, we will continue her legacy, to be here for others," she said.