Emily Hand believes she was held prisoner by Hamas for a year and only spoke in hushed tones after being freed, according to her father.
According to her father, Thomas, the nine-year-old Irish-Israeli had been “conditioned” not to make any noise throughout her two months in captivity.
“She’s a very determined little girl, very strong, and I knew that her spirit would get her through it,” Mr Hand told CNN after Emily was released on the second day of the truce.
Mr Hand was informed that Emily had been killed in the October 7 incident, and he made worldwide news by claiming that she would be better off dead than abducted by Hamas.
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Earlier this month, the 63-year-old discovered she was still alive. They were reunited on Saturday after she was liberated as part of an Israeli-Hamas cease-fire agreement.
“All of a sudden, the door opened, and she bolted.” It was just how I had envisioned it, rushing together. “I probably squeezed her too tightly,” Mr Hand said.
“It was only when she stepped back that I could see her face was chiselled, like mine, whereas before it was chubby, girly, a young kid face.”
Emily informed her father that “nobody hit us” throughout her 50-day confinement. She said that child captives were advised not to make any noise and were only permitted to doodle and play cards.
“The most stunning, scary aspect of meeting her was that she was only whispering and you couldn’t hear her. I had to place my ear to her lips. She’d been trained not to make any noise… “You could see glassy-eyed terror,” Mr Hand explained.
When he asked how long she believed she’d be detained for, Emily said a year.
“Aside from the whispering, that was a gut punch.” “A year,” he told a US television station.
He said Emily fled from home to house in Gaza to avoid Israeli reprisal after the Hamas onslaught that killed over 1,200 people and captured 240 captives.
“Wow, that’s scary. “I’m being pulled, dragged, pushed… probably under gunfire,” he claimed.
Emily was spending the night at Kibbutz Be’eri with her friend Hila Rotem-Shoshani and her mother Raaya when Hamas attacked.
Hila was released together with Emily, whose mother died when she was two, while Raaya remains a captive in Gaza.
“We have to get Raaya back for Hila, Emily, and justice.” Don’t abandon us now. “Bring them home, bring them home,” cried Mr Hand.
Cake for a birthday
On Monday, they celebrated Hila’s 13th birthday with a cake at the hospital, as well as Emily’s ninth birthday, which occurred on November 17 while she was in Gaza.
Mr Hand said it was “very difficult” to inform Emily that her “second mom,” Narkis Hand, had been murdered by Hamas.
“We told her and her little eyes glazed over and she took a sharp intake of breath,” stated the man.
She expressed concern to her father that he, too, had been kidnapped.
“Last night, she couldn’t stop crying till her face turned red and blotchy. She didn’t want to be comforted; I believe she’s forgotten how.” He stated.
But the courageous dancer’s spirit had not been broken.
“The first thing she did on the way home was get a Beyoncé song on,” Mr Hand added.
