The mother of freed hostage Emily Damari revealed that her daughter was held by Hamas at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) facilities in the Gaza Strip, and that the captors refused to provide her with access to medical assistance, writes The Times of Israel.
Emily lost two fingers on her left hand after being shot by Hamas terrorists during the abduction on October 7, 2023. Her mother Mandy, who, like her daughter, also holds British citizenship, said after a phone call with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer that it was a "miracle" her daughter survived.
"Hamas held Emily in UNRWA facilities and denied her medical assistance, shooting her twice," wrote Mandy. "It is a miracle she survived, and we urgently need to help the remaining hostages."
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East later responded to Damari, stating that the "very serious allegation" should be investigated.
"The vast majority of our buildings were turned into shelters when the war began. The agency also had very, very few supplies and assistance it could provide them," said UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma in an interview with the BBC.
Mandy Damari's statement came a day after a new Israeli law came into effect banning UNRWA activities, including in East Jerusalem. UNRWA was accused of promoting hatred in its schools and allowing terrorists to infiltrate its ranks. Some agency employees participated in the atrocities on October 7, and hundreds of others have ties to terrorist groups.
Last year, it was revealed that agency employees were involved in the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The Israeli government believes that many UNRWA workers are involved in the activities of the militant wing of the radical movement. The publication Wall Street Journal, citing intelligence data, claimed that 10% of UNRWA employees in Gaza — about 1,200 people — are connected with Islamist groups in the region, and at least 12 of them were involved in the October 7 attack.
In early January, an investigation by the international human rights group UN Watch was published on the close ties between UNRWA and Palestinian terrorist organizations. Human rights activists found that Hamas and the "Palestinian Islamic Jihad" not only infiltrated the UN-funded agency to the tune of 1.5 billion dollars but also actively influence its activities.
Photo: Reuters