2023-11-27 03:41:15
Published27. November 2023, 04:41
Hostage deal: “Terrible trauma” – this is how Avigail (4) survived
Four-year-old Avigail, who was kidnapped by Hamas, is free once more. US President Joe Biden called what she experienced “a terrible trauma”.
1 / 3
The story of four-year-old Avigail moves many people.
VIA REUTERS
She was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7 with regarding 240 other hostages.
AFP
She only survived because her father threw himself on her and died.
That’s what it’s regarding
A third group of hostages were released by the Islamist Hamas on Sunday, including four-year-old Avigail.
But she only survived because she hid under her father’s corpse.
Her siblings stayed in a closet for around 14 hours.
The fate of a four-year-old American girl released by the Islamist Hamas moves the hearts of many people. The little girl had to witness the murder of her two parents before she was taken to the Gaza Strip. On October 7th, the then three-year-old was at home in a kibbutz on the border with the Gaza Strip with her two siblings, aged ten and six, when the Hamas terrorists invaded and shot the mother in front of the three children, according to US officials. Media reported.
When her father placed himself protectively over his daughter, he was also shot. Her siblings survived because they hid in a closet, where they waited for 14 hours before being rescued, it was said.
Hidden under the father’s corpse
Her little sister, who was initially thought to be dead, crawled out from under her father’s body and ran to a neighbor’s house, the Washington Post quoted a relative of the girl as saying. The terrorists grabbed the girl there along with the five-member neighboring family and deported them and many other civilians to the Gaza Strip. Last Friday the little one turned four years old in captivity. “What she had to endure is unimaginable,” said US President Joe Biden following the girl became the first US citizen to be freed among the hostages as part of the agreement between Israel and Hamas on Sunday.
“She experienced terrible trauma,” Biden said. “What a joy it is to see her with us, but on the other hand it is also sad that she is returning to a reality in which she has no parents,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “She has no parents – but she has a whole nation that embraces her and we will take care of all her needs.”
The great-aunt and cousin said in a statement on Sunday that they had “no words to express our relief and gratitude,” according to the newspaper. The little girl will live with her siblings and with her aunt, uncle and grandparents in Israel, a relative was quoted as saying. Since Friday, 58 of the approximately 240 hostages held by Hamas have been released. The release of another ten hostages is expected this Monday.
(DPA/sys)
1701066416
#Hostage #deal #Terrible #trauma #Avigail #survived
