20 November 2023 , 12:17
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The dad of a nine-year-old Irish-Israeli girl taken hostage by Hamas militants at a sleepover today spoke in anguish of the "sheer terror" his daughter was facing at the hands of "bloody monsters”.
Thomas Hand, the dad of Emily Hand, begged: “Help us to get her back please, " saying she was a victim of extremists who'd "gone way outside the rules of combat.”
Mr Hand is the member of one of the families of two hostages being held by Hamas inside Gaza who came to London this morning to emotionally plead for their release.
Thomas Hand made an emotional appeal in London (Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)He joined Iris Haim, the mum of 28-year-old Yotam Haim, in making an appeal for them to be freed and attacked the “evil” Hamas gunmen who took them. Their children were taken 45 days ago and are among 240 hostages. It was Emily’s 9th birthday on Friday. She was on a sleepover with a friend on October 7th when she was abducted as Hamas militants launched surprise raids across the border into Israel, slaughtering killing 1,200 Israelis and taking hostages. Since the attack, Israel has responded by a massive military campaign that has devastated Gaza, killing 13,000 people according to the Hamas-run health ministry, and displacing thousands more.
The mother of hostage Yotam Haim joined Thomas Hand at the Israel Embassy (PA)Thomas and Iris came to the Israeli embassy in London as the campaign to free some of the hostages continues to grow. Thomas, 63, wearing a black tee shirt which urged: “Bring them Home NOW!” said: “I don’t know how a human being could be so evil. They had evil in their hearts. They were slaughtering, raping and dismembering. I was shaking with fear. At some point in the day they kidnapped my little daughter Emily who was at a sleepover. They took her away. They took her on their trucks and off to Gaza.”
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In a moving appeal, Thomas continued: “Help us to get her back please. Help us get them all back. You don’t know if she’s being fed or watered or what about the toilet. She probably doesn’t even have to a toothbrush. But the sheer terror of a nine year old girl down in those dark tunnels. Sheer terror, panic every hour of every day.
Iris Haim appealed as her daughter Yotam is being held hostage (PA)“She must be saying ‘where’s my daddy? where’s daddy? And that’s what I’m living through - it’s a nightmare. We pray that we get them back. I want Emily back. She’s going to be broken but we will have to fix that."
Describing his daily emotions, Thomas said: “My reason for living - for Emily I have to get up. I want a quiet death." And he remained scathing about the Hamas group who took his little girl, saying: “They’re bloody monsters. They’ve gone way outside the rules of combat.”
Yotam Haim, a drummer in a heavy metal band, was at his apartment on kibbutz Kfar Aza, preparing for a gig in Tel Aviv that night, when the sirens started and he was taken. His mum Iris said: “My son has a chronic disease and need one shot every month. We are really worried - as a mother I cannot explain when I feel. He’s not gone on a trip to London … he’s been captured.”
Thomas Hand wore a bring them home t-shirt as he plead for Emily's safety (Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)She then recalled Britain's legendary prime minister in World War Two, saying: “Winston Churchill looked Hitler in the eyes and said he would fight evil. Do not forget the British mission against this new evil. They are so cruel. It’s not army against army. It’s monsters against children." The pair spoke in front of dozens of photos of the hostages and were joined by relatives of some of those who were killed.