During the months he was held hostage by Israel and hidden in the Gaza Strip, his captors kept repeating the same message: The world had given up on him, they said. Even his family had given up on them.
“Your mother is on vacation in Greece,” the gunman told him. “Your mother knows nothing about you — and doesn’t want to know.”
His parents recounted Kozlov’s ordeal in interviews this week with such force that when Israeli security forces burst through the door of the apartment where Kozlov was being held on Saturday, he was initially unsure whether they were coming to save him or to kill him.
Kozlov was held captive for eight months, while an Israeli doctor reported that although Kozlov and three other rescued Hamas hostages appeared to be in good condition at first glance, examinations showed that all of them were malnourished. Dr. Itay Pesah, head of the hostage repatriation medical team at Sheba Medical Center, said all had been abused to varying degrees and with varying frequencies.
“They have all been subjected to various forms of abuse, punishment and physical and mental torture,” he said.
Dr. Pesach said the hostages he examined had lost a lot of weight, though they later gained some back, and had “significant muscle atrophy.” He added that factors such as malnutrition, incarceration, lack of sunlight and stress could have long-term effects on their health.
Hamas says it treats hostages better than Israel treats Palestinian prisoners, but Israeli officials deny that.
Sheba Medical Center, located on the outskirts of Tel Aviv, was the first stop for dozens of prisoners captured during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Seven of the 251 abducted were rescued, according to Israeli officials. More than 100 were released in November in exchange for Palestinians held in Israel. At least a third of the approximately 120 captives who remain in Gaza have died.
Saturday’s rescue operation was also accompanied by Heavy air strikes There were also heavy casualties in the community where the hostages were being held. Local health officials said the death toll exceeded 270, including children, but did not say how many of them were militants.
In Gaza, the deaths heightened desperation in the region, where officials say at least 36,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the war. In Israel, the rescue effort boosted public sentiment but also served as a reminder that the hostages remain in plight.
“He said it was very difficult. It’s hard to put into words,” said Kozlov’s mother, Evgeniia Kozlova, who spoke to The New York Times in Tel Aviv with his father, Mikhail Kozlov.
For much of his captivity, Kozlov’s family said, the militants bound his hands and feet so tightly that the restraints left marks on his body. Kozlova said the militants also told Kozlov, a 27-year-old Russian-Israeli, that his government had decided the hostage was a liability.
“They told Andre to keep quiet because these hostages were a problem for Israel,” she said. “They said Israel could solve the problem any way it wanted, including killing the hostages so they wouldn’t have to think about them anymore.”
Kozlov’s mother said he only went out at night when he was transferred to a new location.
Dr. Pessac said it was crucial to allow the newly freed hostages to make their own decisions after months of having others make them. But he said they seemed to be craving something else in their first hours of freedom: a look at the sky.
“We already know that we need to get them out the first night they arrive,” Dr. Pesach said.
Mikhail Kozlov said he and his wife had hoped to negotiate their son’s freedom, but ultimately they just wanted him back. He was saddened by the Palestinian civilians who died in the rescue operation.
“If there is such a possibility to avoid these victims, it would be better,” he said.
