by Mick the Ram

The long-awaited agreement between Israel and Hamas for a cease-fire and hostage release came into effect at 11:15 a.m. local time on Sunday 19 January and prompted huge celebrations in Gaza, cautious relief for families of the Israeli captives, and genuine hope for an end to the 15-month war.

Initially there will be an observation from both sides for 42-day truce, during which Hamas is expected to stagger the release of 33 of the remaining 94 hostages – although Israel believes only 60 of these are still alive.

Nevertheless, the first three women were released and in remarkable scenes they were seen being handed over by heavily-armed Hamas forces to the Red Cross, who were able to bring them safely to awaiting Israel Air Force helicopters, who then brought them safely back into Israel.

The women: Emily Damari, Romi Gonen, and Doron Steinbrecher were taken and remain in the Sheba Medical Center, near Tel Aviv for medical checks and treatment, but all three are said to be in surprisingly good health, given their ordeal.

Emily Damari

For British-born Emily Damari, the nightmare began when she was taken from her own home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza and driven away in her own car by militants. Her mother, Mandy, only escaped capture because terrorists shooting at her door inadvertently caused its lock to jam. It emerged that Emily had received a gunshot to the hand and had lost two of her fingers as a result, during her abduction.

The moment the two were reunited and hugged was the moment Mandy said she had been dreaming of for the past 15 months. She said her daughter was  the “happiest girl in the world” now she has her life back.

In an Instagram post published some time later, Emily wrote “love, love, love”, and thanked God, her family and “the best friends I have in this world”. Written in Hebrew, she wrote how she was able to see some of the reaction to her release, and admitted that it “broke my heart with excitement, thank you”. Then with the classic British humour that her mother constantly spoke about during her time in captivity, she includes a hand emoji with two of the fingers curled in reference to her lost fingers.

Romi Gonen

Ms Gomen was 23-years-old when she was captured as she was trying to leave the Nova music festival in southern Israel when Hamas attacked. She was speaking at the time to her mother, Meirav Gonen, who she said she had been shot and was bleeding. Earlier this year Meirav released a recording of her last phone call with her daughter and had repeatedly expressed her grave concern for Romi’s welfare.

She painted a picture of a fun-loving girl who loved to go to raves. Her older sister, Yarden,  explained how she was a regular visitor to a plaza in Tel Aviv where families of the hostages constantly held vigils and how nobody was able to do anything remotely related to their previous lives, they were all consumed with getting their family members home safe.

After the remarkable development in which Romi was one of the first three to be released, Meirav said: “I am taking a moment to breathe it in and believe in this new reality”. She also took time to draw attention to those hostages still left behind, saying: “we need this reality to become true for them as well.”

Doron Steinbrecher

Ms. Steinbrecher, was another taken from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza, and was a practising veterinary nurse with Romanian and Israeli citizenship. She had been in touch with her family when the attack took place, with her parents being told in a harrowing phone call how the militants had smashed her windows and shot into her room.

Last January, Hamas released a video clip of Ms. Steinbrecher and two other captives, Daniella Gilboa and Karina Ariev, in which they pleaded for their release. Although relieved at the time to see her still alive, her mother, Simona, said she was concerned that her daughter was not getting the daily medication she needed, and remarked how pale she looked.

The ordeal over, the family issued a statement through the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters, saying: “After an unbearable 471 days, our beloved Dodo has finally returned to our arms. We want to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who supported and accompanied us along this journey. A special thank you to the people of Israel for their warm embrace, unwavering support, and the strength they gave us during our darkest moments.” They also added that they continue to stand with all the families and would do everything in their power until all loved ones return home.

The next hostages will be released on Saturday 25 January – the seventh day from the start of the ceasefire agreement, a senior Hamas official confirmed.