An Irish Israeli girl who was reportedly killed by Hamas – and whose father said it was a “blessing” that she died and was never captured – is apparently still alive and held hostage by terrorists, according to her family.
Emily Hand, 8, was reportedly killed at Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7, the day of the Hamas invasion, but Israeli officials recently told her family that she was among the hostages.
“We were told that he had been killed. We are in mourning,” said Emily’s half-sister Natalie, 26, according to the Times of Israel. “On October 31, they told us that it was most likely that she had been kidnapped.”
In a direct message to Emily, her half-sister said: “I want to tell you that we are doing everything we can to bring you home. We know you have been held hostage. We love you and miss you so much.”
The Irish Embassy in Israel also confirmed to Irish broadcaster RTÉ that Emily had been kidnapped and not killed.
A diplomatic official told the outlet that tests had shown his DNA was not found among the victims at the kibbutz.
Days after the attack, Emily’s Irish father Tom gave an emotional interview to CNN about what he believed to be her death.
Emily Hand, an 8-year-old Israeli-Irish girl who was reportedly killed by Hamas, is now believed to be alive and being held hostage in Gaza.Tom Hand via CNN
He said Emily had gone to stay at a friend’s house in the kibbutz and two days later, Israeli authorities told him they believed she was dead.
“When we found out that Emily had died, we said ‘Yes!’ and smile, because that’s the best news about the possibilities that I know,” Tom told the outlet at the time.
“If you know anything about what they are doing to people in Gaza, it is worse than death. That’s worse than death, the way they treat you. They have no food, they have no water … he will be in a dark room … and fear every minute, hour, day, and year that may come, so death is a blessing. An absolute blessing,” he added.
Emily’s father, Tom, has said her reported death was a “blessing” compared to the alternative of her being held captive and brutally tortured by terrorists. Family Handout Emily’s half-sister Natalie said in a message to the 8-year-old girl. that “we are doing everything to bring you home.” Channel 12
Natalie’s boyfriend, Natty Virado, 28, confirmed to the Irish Times on Sunday that the family had been informed that Israeli intelligence believed there was a “high chance” that Emily was being held in Gaza with her friend and her friend’s mother.
“These stories keep piling up. This nightmare is getting real. Thomas endures, we all endure. Everyone in the family is dealing with their own grief and doing the best they can,” Virado said.
He also called on the Irish government to do everything it could to help.
Emily is said to be alive and taken hostage. Family Section
Three days ago, Tom said on social media that Narkis, the mother of his two older children, had been “definitely killed” by Hamas – adding that Emily’s reported death was a “mistaken identity.”
On October 7, Tom entered his shelter during a rocket attack from Gaza while his daughter was staying at a friend’s house.
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“I could hear the gunshots getting closer. I called my ex-wife on the kibbutz to make sure she was in a safe room and had locked the door and I told her to call the family where Emily was sleeping,” he said at the time.
She is then escorted by a senior member of the community to a room where a doctor is waiting with a psychiatrist and social worker, and informed that Emily has been murdered.
Emily’s father, Tom, said the reported murder was due to “mistaken identity.”CNN
“They just said, ‘We found Emily and she’s dead,'” he said.
Tom, who was born in Dún Laoghaire and is not Jewish, went with his family to England when he was a child, the Irish Times reported.
As an adult, he registered as a kibbutz volunteer and was assigned to Kibbutz Be’eri.
“It is heaven. I couldn’t have asked for a better place or person,” he said, according to the outlet.
Emily was initially believed to have been killed by Hamas in Kibbutz Be’eri on Oct. 7.CNN
He fell in love with Narkis, a member of the kibbutz, and they had two children, Natalie and Aiden, 29. After their divorce, Tom married Emily’s mother, Liat, who died of breast cancer five years ago.
Tom was in the process of applying for an Irish passport for Emily at the time of the attack.
“He’s very, very sociable and he loves music. He’ll sing in the house all day and he loves to dance. He’ll watch Beyoncé videos. He’s her favorite and will pick up the steps very quickly. He’s always chosen for dance routines on stage for kibbutz for the holidays — always front and center,” he said earlier.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
