Emily Damari: ‘I’m the happiest person in the world’
'My heart is already exploding from excitement. Thank you, thank you, thank you!', the 28-year-old wrote after 471 days of hell in Gaza
After 471 days of anguish, Mandy Damari has finally given her daughter, released hostage Emily Damari “the hug I have been dreaming of”.
Emily, a 28-year-old British national, was freed alongside Doron Steinbrecher, 31, and Romi Gonen, 24, during the delayed initial stage of a six-week hostage-ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, which began on Sunday.
Emily was shot and kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza on the morning of 7 October 2023. Her last message was around 10am, when she wrote that terrorists were in her neighbourhood.
Pictures shared globally across social media on Sunday evening showed Emily on a video call with her family after reuniting with her mother at an IDF facility near the Gaza border. Her left hand is bandaged; two fingers missing.
Mum Mandy said: “I was finally able to give Emily the hug that I have been dreaming of. From the bottom of my heart I would like to thank the many people who have played a role in bringing Emily home and given their support to me and my family. As I said over the course of the campaign, you are all Emily’s family.
“I am relieved to report that after her release, Emily is doing much better than any of us could ever have anticipated. I am also happy that during her release the world was given a glimpse of her feisty and charismatic personality.
“In Emily’s own words, she is the happiest girl in the world; she has her life back. In this incredibly happy moment for our family, we must also remember that 94 other hostages still remain. The ceasefire must continue and every last hostage must be returned to their families. As wonderful as it is to see Emily’s resilience, these are still early days. As you will have seen yesterday, Emily lost two of the fingers on her left hand. She now needs time with her loved ones and her doctors as she begins her road to recovery.
“Neither Emily, myself or other members of our family will be giving interviews or further comments in the immediate future, and we appreciate being given space and privacy to heal at this time.”
In her first Instagram post, Emily wrote: “Love, love, love! I thank God, I thank my family, Oralie, and the best friends in this world. I have returned to my life, my loves. I have only seen a small bit and my heart is already exploding from excitement. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’m the happiest in the world just to be here.”
Family friend Emily Cohen told Sky News it was an “absolute dream come true” to see Emily released, adding that Emily Damari was doing “really, really well” and in a “much better condition” than her family had anticipated, calling her “a feisty, lioness fighter, all the way through, maintaining her incredible sense of humour and beautiful spirit.”
The three released women are expected to remain at Tel Hashomer Hospital for several days for assessment and initial recovery.
The next hostage release is due to take place on Saturday.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
