Emily Damari shares Gaza photos of Dr. Hamas operating on her hand
- Freed former hostage Emily Damari has shared photographs from Gaza on Instagram showing a captive medical procedure alongside what she identified as Dr.
- The newly published images depict Damari lying on a hospital bed at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
- Damari described the conditions inside Shifa Hospital in stark terms in her social media post.
Freed former hostage Emily Damari has shared photographs from Gaza on Instagram showing a captive medical procedure alongside what she identified as Dr. Hamas, following her October 7, 2023, abduction from Kibbutz Kfar Aza. The images were released to coincide with the third anniversary in the Hebrew calendar of the October 7, 2023, pogrom during the Simchat Torah holiday, documenting a 471-day captivity that ended with her January 19, 2025, release.
The newly published images depict Damari lying on a hospital bed at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Damari’s head was covered and her body was wrapped in a blood-stained garment intended to disguise her as a local Muslim woman, a tactic Hamas used to move hostages through the enclave. In the same room, a man identified by Damari as Dr. Hamas operated on her hand after she sustained a gunshot wound during her capture.
Inside Shifa Hospital During Captivity
Damari described the conditions inside Shifa Hospital in stark terms in her social media post. She recalled being held in a blood-stained room alongside a lifeless body on the floor while ten armed men pointed AK-47 rifles at her head. She was abducted alongside her friend Gali Berman, whom she credited with providing companionship during the ordeal.
Lasting Physical Trauma and Complications
Medical complications from the initial gunshot wound persisted long after the operation at Shifa Hospital. Damari lost two fingers from the hand injury sustained during the October 7 attack. Her mother, Mandy Damari, stated that her daughter had been “sewn up any which way” by Hamas, leaving her with severe pain in her hand and leg.
Damari Undergoes Surgeries After Release from Gaza
Following her release on January 19, 2025, in a ceasefire and hostage release deal, Damari underwent a series of surgeries to address her injuries. She kept stitches in her hand for 365 days that should have been removed after fourteen days, while a bullet wound in her leg bled openly for four months in Gaza. She marked her survival as a medical miracle before marrying Danielle Amit in Tel Aviv earlier this year.