After the attack on the kibbutz the daughter was visiting, the father was told that she had died
- Hamas released Irish-Israeli Emily Hand (9 years old) on Saturday. She was kidnapped on October 7.
- Shortly after the attack, her father was informed that she had been killed. Several weeks later, he received a counter notification stating that she was likely being held hostage inside Gaza.
- Emily is one of 13 Israeli hostages and four Thais who were released on Saturday, the second day of a four-day ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.
- 39 Palestinians were also released from Israeli prisons on Saturday. On Sunday night, they were greeted by a cheering crowd in Ramallah in the West Bank.
Irish-Israeli Emily Hand, who was eight at the time, was visiting a friend overnight on Kibbutz Be’eri when Hamas attacked inside Israel on October 7.
Shortly afterwards, her father, the Irishman Thomas Hand, was told that Emily was among about 100 people killed here.
“They just said, ‘We found Emily, and she’s dead,'” he told CNN.
Thomas Hand also said he was relieved by the news.
– I knew what the alternative was for my daughter. I knew she would either be found dead or kidnapped and taken to Gaza.
Emily Leat’s mother died of cancer when she was young.
He completed nine years in captivity
But then, at the turn of the month between October and November, came the surprise:
The family was told it was very difficult It is likely that Emily was among 240 hostages inside Gaza.
– Now I’m back to the nightmare. I don’t know where they took her, dragged her, pushed her and screamed at her. The American’s father said: “I don’t know how afraid she was of being taken to Gaza, to the tunnels.” Letters of News Shortly after that.
In an interview with CNN He told him that his daughter would complete nine years in captivity.
Her birthday is November 17. She is nine years old. She won’t even know what day it is, nor will she know it’s her birthday. There will be no birthday cake, no party, and no friends. You will feel terror in the tunnel under Gaza.
– An indescribable joy
On Saturday, after nearly two months and many conflicting messages to the family, the nine-year-old emerged from Gaza.
We cannot find the words that can describe what we feel now, after 50 days of challenge and complexity, Father Thomas tells the BBC.
Emily Hand was among the thirteen Israeli hostages and four Thais who were released on the second of the four days Ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
As with Emily, most of the hostages released Saturday were kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri, the Washington Post wrote.
– This is a day of unspeakable joy and relief for Emily Hand and her family, says Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in a letter Statement late Saturday night.
Celebrate the released Palestinians
On Saturday evening, 39 Palestinians were also released from Israeli prisons as part of the agreement between Israel and Hamas.
In Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, several hundred people came out on Sunday night to welcome Palestinians now returning to their homes.
Among them was 24-year-old Nourhan Awad. She was 17 when she was sentenced in 2016 to 13 and a half years in prison for stabbing an Israeli soldier with scissors outside Jerusalem’s Old City.
It is planned that 50 hostages will be released from Gaza, and 150 Palestinian prisoners will be released from Israeli prisons.
“Coffee trailblazer. Certified pop culture lover. Infuriatingly humble gamer.”
