Israeli children held hostage in Gaza face a long road to recovery after release.

Doctors and child psychology experts warned dozens of Israeli youngsters held hostage by Hamas in Gaza for more than six weeks may experience difficulties returning home under a prisoner exchange arrangement.

A ceasefire to suspend Gazan combat for four days and release 150 Palestinian inmates is likely to return at least 50 hostages, most of them youngsters.

“They will probably show signs of post-trauma, which means some will be very fidgety, very frightened, and some may be very angry,” said Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo clinical and developmental psychologist Dr. Daphna Dollberg.

According to Israeli police, Islamist militants in southern Israeli cities on Oct. 7 killed at than 1,200 Israelis and foreigners. Hamas and allied forces took 240 hostages.

The Israeli government claims that up to 40 captives include youngsters, including a 10-month-old infant and preschoolers who witnessed their family’ murders before being seized.

It “will never be a full recovery,” Goldberg added. “It would never be that; whatever happened to them would not affect them or be forgotten.”

The fourth captive returned, and the Israeli army rescued the fifth. According to their allegations, Hamas tunneled under Gaza and kept the detainees in small groups.

Major Israeli hospitals and the health ministry are ready to welcome the captives and treat them after weeks of captivity and perhaps the loss of their parents.

“We do have skills and knowledge, and it’s going to be very painful to hear the stories and meet the children,” says Dollberg. We must aid them. We must help them heal.”

On Wednesday, Israel’s Channel 12 claimed that a soldier would follow each youngster and give them explicit directions about what to say and that children in Israeli hospitals would be assigned social workers.

“We should not say OK, now the children are released so everything is OK,” stated Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum medical team leader Professor Hagai Levine.

“In real life it’s complex – they have post-trauma,” stated. “We really need to be supportive and be patient for the long run.”