Over the weekend, as part of the current ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, Hamas released three Israeli hostages who had been in captivity since October 7, 2023. Among them was 28-year-old British-Israeli national Emily Damari.
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While pictures of Damari and the other two young women who were released flooded social media on Sunday, none of them has spoken out until now. Damari took to her own Instagram account and told her followers that “I came back to life,” before thanking God, her family, and her friends, according to the BBC. She added that she saw some of the world’s reaction to her release and “that affected my heart.” (Note: the message was translated from Hebrew to English.)
Despite the horrific details that have come out about the conditions and care the hostages faced during their time in captivity, Damari is said to be in stable condition. When Hamas terrorists invaded her home on that fateful day, they shot and killed her dog in front of her and shot her in the hand. Pictures shared after her release showed that her hand was still bandaged and appeared to be missing two fingers, something her mother confirmed via a statement and a picture posted on X.
Related: Gruesome Details Emerge About the Horrific Conditions Faced by Hostages in Gaza
On Monday, Damari’s mother, Mandy, released a statement via Bring Them Home Now that began, “Yesterday, I was finally able to give Emily the hug that I have been dreaming of.” She added:
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
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On Tuesday, Mandy posted a picture of herself with Emily on X and thanked their supporters.
Thank you to everyone in the UK and around the world who supported the campaign to bring Emily home, and for all your messages here on X. You are amazing and we love you all 🤟
94 hostages still need us🎗️💛 pic.twitter.com/nuRVj6n8tt
— Mandy Damari 🎗🤟 (@DamariMandy) January 21, 2025
Shortly before Emily was freed, her mother also filmed a video thanking President Donald Trump for his role in securing her daughter’s release.
Hostage Emily Damari’s mother thanked Trump for getting the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal done.
Hamas just released Emily as part of the deal after 471 days in captivity.
.@realDonaldTrump made this mother’s dream come true. pic.twitter.com/A5wTDztiFZ
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) January 19, 2025
Related: Who Are the Three Hostages Released by Hamas?
It’s been said that Emily loved traveling to the United Kingdom to visit family and just have fun, and she was a big fan of the Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. She also loved hosting family and friends and had plans to travel to the United States and Japan in the future. I truly hope she gets to fulfill those travel plans now and enjoy her freedom for many years to come.
