Missing Irish-Israeli child Emily Hand video called her sister from a burning house hours before she went missing.
Emily, who turns nine years old this week, is understood to be in Hamas custody following its assault on Kibbutz Be’eri in Israel on October 7. She was initially reported dead but her family was later told her DNA was not found at the scene. It is now assumed she is being held hostage.
Emily’s father Tom Hand met Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in Dublin last night to plead for the Government’s help to free his daughter. The family took part in a press conference organised by the Israeli Embassy in Dublin yesterday.
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Speaking to reporters, Natali Hand, who was in Australia at the time of the Hamas attack, recalled receiving a video call from her younger sister on October 7. Emily was on a sleep over at a friend’s house on the night of the attack and told her the house was burning.
Natali said: “She was asking me why I didn’t take her to Australia. Our bodies hurt from crying. We have no tears left.” Mr Hand, originally from Dun Laoghaire in Dublin, described Emily as a “fun-loving child” who loves music, dancing and singing.
He said: “Even my dog misses her. She used to use him as a pillow, stick her head down and fall asleep. Funny, the things that you miss, and now she’s kidnapped in Gaza along with many others. I want to hug Emily again, love her, fix her.” Speaking about the thoughts of being reunited with his daughter, Mr Hand said: “I’m going to hold her forever. I’m never going to let her go.
“I’m sure Emily was taken by the Hamas, not the Palestinian people, by the Hamas – and they’ll be safe down in the tunnels with the Hamas, they’ll be safe down there.” He also told RTE News he is holding out hope that his daughter is still alive.
Mr Hand added: “In my heart, I believe she’s alive. You have to carry on. Sometimes my head keeps flipping back to when I knew I thought she was dead. That was a very hard flip to do. We were grieving for her mum, who definitely we knew was dead.
“We were already grieving for Emily and then had to completely switch our heads. That was very hard to accept.” The Hand family met the Taoiseach in Government Buildings in Dublin. They were accompanied by other relatives of hostages in Gaza and the Israeli Ambassador Dana Erlich.
Read more: Father of Irish Hamas hostage 'begging on bended knees' for her release
Speaking afterwards, the Taoiseach said: “I assured the Hand family that the Government will do all in its power to secure the release of Emily and to assist the Hand family. And I emphasised Ireland’s call on Hamas to release all hostages immediately without any preconditions.
“I committed to continue calling for all hostages held by Hamas to be released immediately. And I also committed to continue raising the issue of hostages with international agencies and Governments and through any other avenues which might help. I also used the opportunity of the meeting with the Israeli Ambassador to raise the issue of Irish-Palestinian dual citizens in Gaza who have asked to leave the territory.”
Speaking to the media yesterday afternoon at a press conference with French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, Mr Varadkar said the Government would do all that it could to ensure Emily was released. He added: “Emily Hand, who will be nine years old this week, is an Irish citizen and an Irish passport holder and we will do all that we can to find out information about her whereabouts. Hopefully she is alive and well. I believe she is in my heart and I know her father does too. I’m very keen to do anything we can through intermediaries to secure her release or at least information about her.”
Mr Varadkar also said he will raise Emily’s case with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, the Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, and Prince Rashid, chief adviser to the King of Jordan and the head of Jordan’s humanitarian operation, in Paris next week. The Taoiseach also stressed the importance of keeping diplomatic channels open with Israel. It comes as a Sinn Fein motion will be debated today on referring Israel to the International Criminal Court.
A separate Social Democrats motion calling for the Israeli Ambassador to Ireland Dana Elrich to be expelled will be debated and voted upon on tomorrow. The Taoiseach confirmed the Government will not be supporting either motion.
He added: “I think the position that the Opposition parties are taking really makes no sense. It is not helpful at all and it is not grown up and it is not helping us in trying to achieve what we are trying to achieve.”
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