‘Shadows of Children’: For Youngest Gaza Hostages, Life Moves Forward in Whispers

FILE - Sharon Aloni, 34, holds her 3-year-old twins, Yuli and Emma, who were taken hostage during the October 7 attack by Hamas, at Schneider Children's Medical Center in Petah Tikva, Israel, on Nov. 27, 2023. (Schneider Children's Medical Center via Reuters) Yuval Haran, whose family is celebrating the return of his mother, his sister and four others from Hamas captivity in Gaza, poses for a portrait with a picture on his phone of his family's hostage posters, in Herziliya, Israel, on Dec. 4, 2023. FILE - Sharon Hertzman, right, hugs her husband, Hen Avigdori, as they reunite in Ramat Gan, Israel, on Nov. 25, 2023. Sharon Hertzman and her 12-year-old daughter, Noam, not pictured, were released by Hamas after being held as hostages in Gaza for 50 days. (Haim Zach/GPO via AP) FILE - Danielle Aloni laughs next to her daughter, Emilia, 5, as they meet family members at the Schneider Children's Medical Center in Israel on Nov. 25, 2023. The two were among hostages held by U.S.-designated terror group Hamas in Gaza. FILE - Released Israeli hostage Margalit Moses walks with an Israeli soldier upon her arrival in Israel on Nov. 24, 2023, after being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. (Israel Defense Forces via AP)

After seven weeks held hostage in the tunnels of Gaza, they are finally free to laugh and chat and play. But some of the children who have come back from captivity are still reluctant to raise their voices above a whisper.