cnn
,
When Gaza’s scorching heat was at its peak, Andrei Kozlov said Hamas fighters would protect him with blankets, leaving him drenched in sweat. When he asked about his society, he said that they had forgotten him. When they removed the curtain from his vision, they said they would blow him up and photograph his murder.
The 27-year-old man noted that he suffered severe mental – and some physical – abuse at the hands of Hamas. He is unable to explain to himself what happened to him and the two other hostages he was held with during his eight-month captivity in Gaza.
Then on October 7, after being taken away from the Nova Music competition, Kozlov, a Russian-Israeli citizen, said he was “tied with rope for three days, then with chains until mid-December.” During those months they faced “creative” methods of punishment: one protected person “told us a lot that Israel wanted to kill us” and that they were an infection that Israel wanted to rid itself of.
Kozlov tried not to believe the lies, he said, but the result was that, when the Israeli squad exploded the building in which he was being held, he thought they had been sent to explode him.
In turn, it was an improved rescue operation that brought him and two others home – as well as Noah Argamani, who was being held in a nearby building. But it certainly left a path of destruction in its wake: The Gaza government says at least 274 Palestinians were killed in the attack and subsequent shootout with Hamas militants.
In an interview with CNN, Kozlov spoke about his months of captivity in Gaza, the mental torture he endured, the warnings he faced, and his need to accept Israel and Hamas’ offer to release additional hostages. told.
Kozlov was nearing the end of his shift as a security guard at the Nova competition when Hamas fighters began occupying more of the border. He moved to Israel from Russia two years ago, and took the job because it was “easy money.” When it turned off, Kozlov thought, “I’ll come back home, sleep and everything will be fine. But no, it didn’t.”
Over the next few minutes, he was walking through the woods with “probably 200, 300 people”, terrified by the sound of gunfire and the wave of devastating videos that had already surfaced online. However as soon as they reached the straight meadow, Kozlov saw – he recalled in broken English – “a car full of people in green uniforms. And they shoot in the air, they were already shooting at us Are.
Hiding inside trees was negative support. He was suddenly found and taken to Gaza, where he was interred with Almog Meir Jan and Shlomi Ziv, among several other parks, before their final rescue in Nusseirat, in the middle of the enclave.
In her first month, her captor “took the cloth from my eyes and showed me by signs” what he planned to do. The person pointed to himself – “I” – the visitor tapped his supervisor – “Tomorrow” – the visitor pointed to Kozlov – “You” – the visitor pointed to the camera, its shutter Clicked – “Film” – the visitor made a gun with his own hands, pulling the trigger – “Kill.”
Kozlov said he thought this month would be his last, although – as the hours passed – that worry gradually subsided. The next day, he said he had come to understand that “they probably won’t kill us.” Once again using indicators, they explained to Kozlov that they wanted to replace him: “You are going to Israel, our people are going to Gaza and the West Bank.”
For the first three months, the sound of Israeli bombing was constant, Kozlov said: “We were afraid of every bomb we heard. Every time you started hiding in the corners of our room.” His captors laughed and asked what he was afraid of, he said.
They were moved between homes several times, Kozlov said, and were given hearty meals in some parks. Then being freed from the chains in December, in some of the parks where he was held, he got a chance to exercise – “squats, pushups” and so on.
However, he suffered prolonged mental abuse, he said, by masked guards who saw him holding a Kalashnikov and a “big knife”. The main store’s character, he said, was “split” and he was constantly “going crazy.”
“He has two personalities,” Kozlov said. “He told us: ‘I have two faces: one good, but I don’t want you to see the other face – like, I could kill you.’
Some mornings, the patronage may be pleasant, offering to play games with them. However, on alternate mornings Kozlov “wakes up and you understand – ah, another face. You don’t even talk to him.”
Kozlov could be punished for arbitrary issues, he said. Once, while dousing his hands with drinking water before eating, Preserve “noticed and he said, ‘I told you not to do that, yes?'” Someone at Preserve described Kozlov as “a really thick blanket. “In the middle of May,” and put him in the heat for some time and a half.
Kozlov’s testimony alternately matches the testimony of the rescued hostages. The doctor in charge of medical treatment for Kozlov and three others rescued in the Israeli operation said they were beaten and described their captivity as a “harsh, harsh experience, with a lot of abuse, almost every day.”
“There have been periods when they got almost no food, there have been periods where it was a little better, but overall, the combination of psychological stress, malnutrition or not getting enough food… has a significant impact on health. ” Dr. Itai Pesach gives CNN advice on later life.
Nonetheless, Kozlov considers himself “lucky”. He noted that during his 8 months in Gaza he saw various hostages, “but I don’t want to talk about it… it’s painful and it’s going to be dangerous for them,” he said. Were they worse off? “Yes they were.”
Because of this, Kozlov urged Israeli officials to “try to understand how we (the hostages) were feeling this whole time. We need to bring them home as quickly as possible.” I don’t know how, but we need to do this immediately.”
On the other hand, optimism regarding a ceasefire offer for the hostages has waned to date, as Hamas has warned that Israeli activities in Gaza could jeopardize the talks. By the deadline, a U.S. official told CNN that the promise of a framework is “in place” and an Israeli official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has authorized his negotiators to go into suggestive talks, indicating possible steps forward. Gives indication of.
Talks resumed in Qatar’s capital Doha on Friday. Over the weekend, Hamas assured Israel of a compromise on a key condition – that Netanyahu’s government commit to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza before signing one. However, a comment from Netanyahu’s office on Sunday cast hesitation over the proposal, citing several “principles” that Israel is unwilling to give up, including resuming fighting in Gaza “as long as the war Not all objectives are achieved.”
For Kozlov, the moment he was captured – and rescued – marked a historic turning point in his career. His second “birthday” was on 7 October; June 18, his third. He wants 120 additional mortgages to mark their respective dates.