In January, Emily Damari was one of the first hostages released as part of the current cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas.The 28-year-old British-Israeli national was kidnapped from her own home in Kfar Aza on October 7, 2023, and driven away by terrorists in her own car. We learned that she’d been shot in the hand and was missing two fingers when she arrived back in Israel in January. We also knew that her dog had been shot and that other members of her family hid from these evil men.
After I wrote about her earlier this year, Emily earned a special place in my heart. I’ve been keeping up with her story and following her on social media. Her Instagram timeline is often a careful balance of her own celebration of freedom and support and sorrow for the other hostages who remain in or who died in Hamas custody. Initially, after thanking everyone for their support, including Donald Trump, she and her mom asked for “space and privacy to heal” — and understandably so.
Related: Thousands Line the Streets to Honor the Bibas Family
But now, Emily is speaking out about her ordeal, particularly her medical situation. On Sunday, she posted on Instagram about the “medical care” she received on her hand while in captivity, during which she lost her fingers. She also said that she was shot in the leg by the same bullet that killed her dog. Emily has since had corrective surgery in Israel, but I’ll stop here and let her tell her story (note the following has been translated from Hebrew to English):
‘Hi, I’m Dr. Hamas,’ that’s what the doctor at ‘Shifa’ told me before the ‘surgery.’
Seventeen months have passed since then, and now the moment I’ve been waiting for has arrived—the real surgery, at Sheba Medical Center.
I remember sitting in Shifa on October 7th, looking at a small window there, feeling my hand shattered and my leg shot from the bullet that hit Choocha, my beloved dog, the most precious thing I had for 11 years. In all the chaos, I didn’t even have time to process it. After all, I was kidnapped to Gaza along with two good friends, my neighbor was murdered, I left my mother, my brother, his wife, and their daughters behind—who knew what would happen to them…
Then that moment came—they took me into the operating room, with a corpse in front of me.I saw the blue sky, which should have been gray on such a day. I prayed to God to protect me. And then I woke up to Dr. Hamas informing me that I no longer had two fingers, and that the wound on my leg remained open with four stitches instead of sixteen.
Today, after 17 months, my moment has arrived—to replace Shifa with Sheba and finally receive proper treatment.
I have come to terms with my injury, truly. I know there is still recovery ahead, but this time, I am surrounded by family and friends I love, and that’s what matters.
I am proud of my scars, and with them, I will triumph. 🤟🏼
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.”
To conclude, I want to thank Sheba Medical Center, the Department of Orthopedic Hand Surgery and the incredible doctors who treated me—Dr. Amir Arami, Dr. Tzvika Steinberger, Dr. Matan Biran, and the amazing team of nurses led by Mina Brilovich.
I have to say that Emily’s attitude has been incredibly inspiring after all she’s been through, and I hope we can all keep her and her medical team in our thoughts and prayers, as well as the other hostages. As of Thursday, the Associated Press reports that there are thought to be 59 hostages still in Hamas captivity, though Israel believes that 32 of them are dead.
