中國網站品牌欄目（頻道）
Gilad Shalit's captors provided him with a stationary bicycle, a radio and paper on which to draw and chronicle his captivity, according to officials who disclosed on Sunday preliminary details of the freed Israeli soldier's ordeal.
Repatriated from Gaza last month in a German- and Egyptian-mediated prisoner swap, the gaunt Shalit said at the time that being kept incommunicado had been hard but hearing news of Israel's efforts to recover him had buoyed his spirits.
Hamas, the Islamist group that led Shalit's cross-border abduction in 2006, has said it treated him well, an account largely dovetailing with that of two non-Palestinian officials briefed on the 25-year-old ex-conscript's case.
"They (Hamas) had a vested interest in keeping him in good shape, so they did what they could, providing him with a stationary exercise bike and a range of food," said one official, who would not be identified by name or nationality.
Shalit's decrepitude, officials said, was due to depression from his five years of isolation, lack of sunlight and shrapnel wounds from his capture that received only superficial treatment to fend off infection. He underwent surgery in Israel last week.
By agreement with Shalit's family, Israeli media have kept a respectful distance and military debriefers have set a slow pace to their visits while the former hostage recuperates.
A spokeswoman for Israel's armed forces declined to discuss the conditions of Shalit's captivity, citing privacy concerns.
His father, Noam, said after the Oct 18 swap that Shalit had endured "difficult experiences", but did not elaborate.
Asked whether this referred to deliberate physical abuse, the officials briefed on Shalit's case said it was too early to know. "He gave relatively little information after his release, and the fuller debriefings will take time," said one official.
（中國日報網英語點津 Helen 編輯）
About the broadcaster:
Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.
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