Keith Siegal was tortured physically and emotionally, starved and held in inhuman conditions, his family said in a statement on Monday. Siegal who was released from Gaza on Saturday suffered extreme weight loss. Siegal barely saw sunlight, his daughter Shir, said. "He was held in isolation and often lost hope of ever returning home. "He was in the darkest and scariest place on earth," she said.
"My father passed 484 days knowing each moment could be his last, and that the terrorists could execute him if the military pressure increased, as he knew had been the fate of others among the captives. He went through hell that no one would ever be able to understand.
Shir said her father chose to wrap himself with an Israeli flag when he returned to Israel and was flown to the Soratzky Medical Center in Tel Aviv. "He chose to walk, despite the pain and weakness but inside he was broken hearted over what happened to our community on Oct. 7 and what the people of Israel must still endure."
Keith Siegal reunites with his family after his release from Hamas captivity
(GPO)
Siegal's daughter said her father drew strength from the public's fight for the release of hostages and from the military's efforts to find and rescue them. "In contrast he was broken by the violence, the divide and the incitement among Israelis. One of his first questions to us was what could he do to help bring all of the hostages, home?" she said.
Siegal asked about what had happened in Kfar Aza, his kibbutz and home from which he was abducted. "We went over the cruel list of 64 deal and beloved people who were murdered. He could not believe how many of his friends and neighbors were massacred. People from our community who will never return. My father came back to life and is begging us not to miss any more opportunities to save the hostages who are alive and bring those who are dead, to burial."
Shir said she had feared she would never see the moment that her father returned and had often lost hope fearing the worse.
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Keith Siegal during his release from Hamas captivity on Saturday
(Photo: Dawoud Abu Alkas / Reuters)
She then turned her comments to the families of fallen soldiers who died in the war. "I am sorry bereavement came to your door so that we receive life. I apologize to civilians, soldiers and members of the security forces who sacrificed their lives for us, for the country and the security of each and every citizen. I apologize and am grateful," she said.
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Shir also apologized for the hostages who were taken alive and murdered in the hands of Hamas. "I love each and every one of you as if you were my family. Our dream was to see you at home. This should not have happened. I apologize on behalf of the people of Israel that we did not do enough to bring you back alive. You are proof that our warning that we were running out of time was not mere words. All of the hostages must be returned, now.