The mother of a British woman who was among those taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 has written a heartfelt letter to her daughter, urging British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to ensure the letter is delivered to Gaza. Emily Damari, 28, a dual British-Israeli citizen, was taken hostage from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, near the Gaza border, where she was born and raised. Daily mail reported.
Mandy Damari, Emily’s mother, traveled to Downing Street earlier this week and presented the note for her daughter to Mr Starmer. She also urged the British government to do more to bring Emily back home.
“It breaks my heart a little more, day by day… Soon there will be nothing left of my heart – or of Emily,” said 63-year-old Mandy.
She said most Britons were still unaware that a British citizen was still being held hostage in Gaza. That’s why he urged Starmer to mention her daughter when the British government talks about the hostages.
Mandy asked Starmer to use “all his influence” to get Emily back, saying: “Diplomatic pressure, negotiations, humanitarian efforts – whatever it takes… We can’t let another day pass.”
She said the country cannot afford to lose any more lives to the nightmare, adding: “We don’t need tea and sympathy, we need actions, not words.”
Here is Mandy’s heartfelt letter to her daughter:
“Dear Emily,
I hope this note reaches you if you are still alive and at home with me, Abba and all your family. And you’ll see that we’re all still alive.
If it affects you in Gaza, please know that we all love and miss you and worry about what is happening to you every day. We pray and meet with whoever we can to get you home.
Please stay strong, keep praying and just be your beautiful self that I love to the moon and back. You come home. And I promise I’ll never complain about your perfume sticking to me when you’re home again.
I love you so much
Your mother (who is always right!)”
In January this year, Dafna Elyakim, a released hostage, said in an interview with an Israeli TV channel that she and her sister were taken by Hamas militants to underground tunnels, where they met five other hostages. Besides Emily Damari, the other four she mentions are Liri Albag, Naama Levy, Romy Gonen and Agam Berger.
It is believed that Emily, along with twin brothers Ziv and Gali Berman, are still being held hostage in a deep underground tunnel somewhere in the Gaza Strip. Monday marks one year since Hamas militants attacked southern Israeli communities on October 7, killing at least 1,200 people and kidnapping more than 250 others.
The report further stated that Emily’s beloved dog Choocha, a golden cockapoo, was shot dead in her arms by the Hamas militants, while she also suffered a gunshot wound to the hand.