Yesterday, Sunday, August 17, Shamir Medical Center (Assaf Harofeh) hosted a national emergency conference with the participation of medical and mental health staff from across Israel. The conference was part of the outcry from healthcare workers to save the hostages, whose time is running out.

The day’s events began as early as 8 a.m. with marches and displays of support against the backdrop of deep concern for the safety of the 50 hostages still held captive by Hamas, and the urgent need to bring to the public and professional agenda the health implications of their captivity.

The day’s climax was the emergency conference held at the Shamir Medical Center convention hall, attended by doctors, nurses, psychologists, social workers, para-medical practitioners, and representatives of the hostages’ families.

The meeting focused on the medical, moral, and social aspects of the hostages’ plight, and on the health system’s preparedness to receive and treat them upon their release. The conference was moderated by Dr. Hila Korach and included the participation of Dr. Osnat Levtzion-Korach, CEO of Shamir Medical Center; Prof. Hagai Levine, Head of the Health Task Force of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum; Ms. Dana Weiner, Director of Nutrition Services at Sheba Medical Center; and Dr. Daphna Shefet, psychiatrist, among others.

In addition, testimonies were heard from relatives of the hostages: Machbit Meir, aunt of Gali and Ziv Berman; Yael Eder, mother of Tamir Eder; Danny Miran, father of Omri Miran; and Niva Vinkert, mother of Omer Vinkert.

Dr. Osnat Levtzion-Korach, CEO of Shamir Medical Center:
“From here, from within the medical community, I call upon international health organizations, the global medical community, and first and foremost the Red Cross, you bear the professional and moral duty to act immediately. You must ensure basic human conditions: water, food, medical treatment, and the preservation of human dignity.
Several hospitals, including ours at Shamir, have developed expertise in treating returned hostages, and we have all witnessed the long and complex process of rehabilitation.
I believe that despite the horrific condition of the hostages still in Gaza, we, together with  their families will be able to rehabilitate them and bring them back to life. Therefore, we must all do everything, absolutely everything, to end this horror. The hostages must return home now. Only with their return can the process of healing begin.”

Prof. Hagai Levine, Head of the Health Task Force, Hostages and Missing Families Forum:
“We are in the midst of a health emergency. The living hostages face immediate danger of death, due to a combination of injuries — first and foremost deliberate starvation, which has caused a loss of up to half their body weight. The absence of the fallen hostages leaves a gaping wound in the hearts of their families and in the heart of our nation. The abduction causes catastrophic harm not only to the hostages themselves but also to the physical and mental health of their families and of Israeli society as a whole. Our role as health professionals is to stand at the forefront of the struggle for their return, at all times and in all places, to support the survivors of captivity and their families, and to fight for the sanctity of life. We gathered today to remind: the return of all hostages, both the living and the fallen, is a necessary condition for the rehabilitation of our society in Israel.”

Machbit Meir, aunt of Gali and Ziv Berman, hostages in Gaza:
“Gali and Ziv were kidnapped to Gaza, separated for the first time in their lives, and endured harsh torture in horrific captivity conditions. We never received any videos. We know they are starving, isolated, and suffering. Our whole family struggles to survive the uncertainty, the fear. We appeal to you, members of the health system, raise your voices, share what you see every day. Our story is about saving lives. We are all one human fabric, help us bring our loved ones home.”

Yael Eder, mother of hostage Tamir Eder:
“We have lived for almost two years now in ongoing uncertainty. We received a death certificate for my son, Tamir, with the words: ‘Place of burial – unknown.’ How can one continue when there is no farewell, no funeral? Tamir is my child, and I will continue to raise him until my last day, even if his body is still in Gaza. The hostages are not numbers. Each of them has a name, a life, a family, and children waiting for either a farewell or a hug. We are families in trauma, unable to begin the healing process without certainty. Returning the hostages is not only a humanitarian matter — it is a condition for all of us to continue living.”

Niva Vinkert, mother of Omer, held captive:
“Omer was left alone in a narrow tunnel, in unimaginable conditions, with a latrine pit beside him, meagre and rotten food, without any human contact except for a few minutes a day. He endured severe abuse: beatings with an iron rod, humiliations, being sprayed with pesticide ‘because he is a Jew and a pest.’ From his long isolation, he performed a farewell ritual to himself, realizing he would never return to who he was, and even saying goodbye to his family. For us to heal, everyone must return home. Despair is not a way forward — hope is.”

Dana Weiner, Director of Nutrition Services, Sheba Medical Center (Tel Hashomer):
“Today we see the severe consequences of the hunger the captives endured: drastic weight loss, severe damage to the immune system and vital organs, and physical and psychological traumas that will accompany them for years. The body tells the story, and the soul is still paying the price. This is a painful reminder that hunger is not just a temporary state — it is a deep and lasting health injury. We must say in a clear voice: never again.”

Dr. Daphna Shefet, psychiatrist, “Bo’u” organization:
“In my work as a psychiatrist, I have met elderly people who emerged from concentration camps weighing fifty kilos, yet they built families, raised children with pride, and lived to see grandchildren.
We must fight for the hostages before they become just another ‘approved for publication’ notice.