Gaza: After being held for five months, Dania Hanatsheh—a Palestinian—who was released by Israel on Sunday said the situation in the prisons was ‘bad before’ but became worse after the Israel-Hamas war. She told this in an interview to ABC News. But, she stated that the female prisoners were strong. She was among the 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees released by Israel after Hamas released first three Israeli hostages following a ceasefire deal.
The 90 freed Palestinian prisoners were sent in two buses from an Israeli prison to the occupied West Bank town of Beitunia, according to reports. There were cheers and sounds of joy reverberating in the entire region with Palestinians rejoicing over the moment.
First three hostages released by Hamas were women, know them better
After staying about 15 months in captivity, three women— Emily Damari, Romi Gonen and Doron Steinbrecher—were released by the Hamas.
Emily Damari
Emily Damari is a British-Israeli dual national, according to reports. Her mother, Mandy Damari, who has campaigned tirelessly for her release since she was kidnapped by Hamas militants in October 2023, expressed her happiness over her daughter’s comeback after 471 days. The footage released by the Israeli military shows Emily smiling and hugging her mother with a bandaged hand. On the day of her kidnapping, Emily was at home in Kfar Aza in southern Israel when Hamas gunmen stormed her home. They injured her hands and legs during the attack. Her dog Choocha was killed with a gunshot, her mother told ABC News.
Emily is home ♥️ pic.twitter.com/JCMmKEAhKr
— Mandy Damari 🎗 (@DamariMandy) January 19, 2025
Romi Gonen
Romi Gonen was kidnapped from the Nova music festival in southern Israel. Romi’s mother, Merav, and her eldest daughter spent nearly five hours speaking to her as the terrorists marauded through the festival grounds on that day, reported ABC New. Romi had informed her family that roads clogged with abandoned cars and that’s why she couldn’t escape. She would seek shelter in some bushes. A few weeks after her abduction, her mother had recounted how she was shot and wounded, reports stated.
Doron Steinbrecher
Doron is a veterinary nurse who loves animals, and a neighbour to Emily Damari, reported the ABC News. Doron holds both Israeli and Romanian citizenship. She was abducted on October 7, 2023. Minutes before her abduction, she had reportedly called her mother and revealed that she was hiding under the bed. She managed to send a voice message to her friends, saying: “They’ve got me!”
