Freed Israeli hostage Emily Damari holds Tottenham scarf aloft as she thanks club and fans for their support
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A British-Israeli hostage who was shot in the hand and then taken captive by Hamas has thanked Tottenham Hotspur fans for their support of her. Emily Damari, 28, was one of the first three hostages on Sunday after she spent 471 days in captivity under the terms of a ceasefire deal with Israel and the terror group after its attack of October 7, 2023.
Fans of the Premier League side had regularly shown their support for Ms Damari’s plight, as well as that of other hostages, by tying yellow ribbons around White Hart Lane and chanting ‘She’s one of our own’ at matches. On Wednesday, Emily was pictured smiling and holding aloft a “Come on you Spurs” scarf as she thanked fans for their support.
Her mum, Mandy Damari, said: “I told Emily about all the Spurs fans who released yellow balloons and created a "She's one of our own" chant for her. “She is so touched and we can't wait to join you again for a match. Let's keep going for the 94 remaining hostages, including 8 with British links.”.
The message on behalf of Emily included a hand emoji with two of the fingers curled. Emily lost two fingers after being shot in the hand during her capture. Her release alongside that of Romi Gonen, 24, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, was the first of several planned over the next six weeks.
In return, 90 Palestinian prisoners were released. In the first phase of the ceasefire deal, a total of 33 hostages will be released and around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners will be freed. Hamas said it planned to release another four hostages on Saturday, but has not given their names.
