Danielle Aloni, an Israeli woman wrote an emotional letter expressing gratitude to the Hamas fighters for the love and care given to her daughter Emilia during their 49-day stay in besieged Gaza.
Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, shared the letter on its official Telegram account on 27 November.
Danielle Aloni and her five year old daughter Emilia were held in captivity by Hamas for 49 days in Gaza. The Israeli mother and daughter were among the second batch of 24 Israeli hostages released as part of a temporary ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel, on 24 November.
Before they left Gaza to and reunite with their loved ones, Danielle Aloni penned a warm “thank you” letter to Hamas saying, “I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your extraordinary humanity shown towards my daughter, Emilia.”
The letter, originally written in Hebrew, was translated into Arabic in the post shared by Qassam brigades.
Aloni acknowledged the good care given to hostages in Gaza and wrote: “Thank you for the many hours you spent as caregivers.”
She further stated that her daughter felt “like all of you are her friends, not just friends, but truly beloved and good”.
“In the long journey we have been on, we have not met anyone who has not been kind to her, you have treated her with kindness and compassion… Children should not be in captivity, but thanks to you and other kind people we met along the way, my daughter felt like a queen in Gaza,” she added.
She extended her prayers and wishes to Palestinians: “I wish in this world we could truly be good friends… I wish you all health and well-being… health and love to you and your families’ children.”
Aloni ended her brief letter expressing her empathy for Hamas, stating: “I will remember your kind behaviour shown in spite of the difficult situation you faced and the severe losses you suffered here in Gaza.”
Earlier, in several footages released by Qassam brigades the Israeli hostages were seen bidding farewell to the fighters waving hands, while they exchanged words of compassion and gratitude.
