Delighted for Emily Hand

Sorry, yes, I know you are all right. It was just that smiling "Yess!" that I found a bit strange, apparently he regretted it later.

Exactly this.

Seriously?

Of course he doesn't regret it. He was speaking from grief, and acknowledging the awful possibilities of what might have befallen her if captured.

Finding out she was alive of course, and naturally, shifted his perspective to having her back safe and well.

Amazing that you can pick this point to comment on.

His ex wife (and mother of Emily's siblings) was definitely murdered on Oct 7 though, any Google of Narkis Hand will confirm that

Yes, she was, very sadly.

Not in front of Emily though (thankfully).

Your post had so many inaccuracies - that she didn't live with her father, that she will be moved to Ireland now, that she saw her father's ex-wife (that you also wrongly believe raised her - she seems to have had a warm relationship with her, typical of kibbutz living but she was certainly raised by her dad) murdered (she must have witnessed terrible things, but this doesn't appear to be the case.

Wow. Given what had happened, I wonder how you think he should have behaved

Took the words out of my mouth

I really, really dislike people criticising attitudes/reactions of people who have gone through something traumatic. Let alone something as absolutely unfathomable as believing your young daughter has been kidnapped, fearing she may be sexually abused, and then being lead to believe she has died. I cannot even begin to imagine, let alone dictate the correct way to respond.

I got the reasoning, but his manner was very odd.

Of course his manner was odd.

My 'manner' would be odd for the rest of my life if my child had been caught up in that pogram and I thought she'd been barbarically killed by savage men, nevermind 24 hours after it.

Absolutely. After the horror of that day and the way women and girls in particular were treated, the thought of this scenario must have been unbearable.

I am so happy to see her return. I hope she heals quickly and the light appears in her eyes again.

I think the little girl she was staying with was returned, but not her mother (breaking the agreement that families wouldn't be split).

I can't imagine Leo was referencing gospel. He grew up in a Catholic home but does not describe himself as religious.

Badly worded tweet, but the whole statement was fine.

Very much agree.

I remember the clip of a man saying that, didn't realise it was Emily's father.

No one knows how they would have reacted in that moment. Where you know generally what happens to hostages/ people who fall in hamas' hands.
Bombarded by media.
For him that may have been more palatable than letting his mind run riot.
I think we need to cut him some slack.

Absolutely. I'd give wide latitude to anyone in those circumstances

I didn't think his manner was odd at all. Compared to what? His little girl had been kidnapped by a group who had just been torturing and raping women and girls. What is the correct way to react? I think he will regret it now though, just another reason to feel incredibly sorry for him.

You can hear the clip on The Newsagents podcast from that day

is there a clip anywhere?

I wonder if Tom Hand regrets that strange interview he gave just after Emily was taken, where he said he was so happy to hear she was dead, because what could happen to hostages was horrendous. I got the reasoning, but his manner was very odd.

Sorry, you're right - I mistakenly believed he was no longer living in Israel because he's been giving interviews from London and he was in the process of applying for an Irish passport for Emily. His ex wife (and mother of Emily's siblings) was definitely murdered on Oct 7 though, any Google of Narkis Hand will confirm that.

Emily’s story resonated with me as I have a DD of a similar age and couldn’t stop imagining how she would be feeling in the same situation. To be held alone in those circumstances for over 50 days must have traumatised her deeply, and you can see that in the photos - her little face looks so drawn. I do hope the family are able to access psychological support and therapy for her.

to live with a father that she hasn't lived with for ?? years.

She lived with him until 07 October. 🤷🏻‍♀️

she will presumably now move to Ireland, which is not her home,

I doubt this since her father hasn't lived here for many years, and his other children are living in Israel too.

It's possible but I can't imagine you have any knowledge of it.

And then that second mother figure was murdered in front of her,

I also just checked this.

In an interview Thomas Hand gave to the Irish Times on 18 October (when it was still believed Emily was dead, he speaks about calling his ex wife to ask her to call the family with whom Emily was having a sleepover.

‘Can you imagine the sheer horror for an eight-year-old?’: Dún Laoghaire man tells of grief at daughter’s death in Israel

www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2023/10/18/can-you-imagine-the-sheer-horror-for-an-eight-year-old-tom-hand-tells-of-grief-at-daughter-emilys-death/

You really should be more careful with the facts.

I'm not sure where you are getting your information from?

Tom Hand has not lived in Ireland for many years; he was living in the same kibbutz from where she was kidnapped, raising Emily there.

I too am quite uncomfortable at the media's tone in the coverage of these children getting released, and all the crowd and cameras in their faces. Little consideration of mention of the trauma of what they've been through, and that they all look like they are in a traumatised state; it's not a "they're free, their torture is over". I hope they are left in peace and given all the mefical and psychological support they need to try to recover.

Emilu's story is heartbreaking. Her mum died when she was a toddler, she was being raised in Israel by her dad's ex wife as he'd moved back to Ireland. And then that second mother figure was murdered in front of her, she's spent terrifying weeks as a terrorists' hostage, and she will presumably now move to Ireland, which is not her home, to live with a father that she hasn't lived with for ?? years.

Obviously it's fantastic that she's been released. But it's just trauma on top of trauma for that poor little girl.

I'm very happy to see these hostages released, especially the children. It is very touching to see them reunited with their loved ones. I can only hope that they're given adequate support to help them deal with the impact of the trauma.

Heartbroken for the little girl who turned 4 in captivity after having watched both of her parents being murdered. She has had 50 days of living with that horror, with no psychological support and in the most terrifying of circumstances. I am sure that her fellow hostages must have done their best to care for her but I don't even know how you can begin to rebuild from that kind of experience. I fear it will be a long road ahead.