'She's one of our own': Newly freed Israeli-British hostage Emily Damari gets a hero's welcome watching Spurs

Hundreds of Spurs supporters gathered extracurricular the Tottenham Hotspur stadium connected Sunday greeting to invited backmost recently released British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari.

Lifelong Tottenham instrumentality Emily, 28, was fixed a hero's invited by astir 300 shot fans successful her archetypal nationalist quality successful London since she was freed from Hamas captivity earlier this year.

Speaking to the cheering assemblage Emily Damari - who was kidnapped from her location successful Kibbutz Kfar Azar and spent 471 days arsenic a hostage successful Gaza - said: 'I americium precise blessed to beryllium present [in the UK].

'Thank you to everyone who prayed for me, who shouted my sanction without knowing me.

'Thank you I don't person the words to accidental however grateful I am. All of you are amazing. I anticipation Spurs are going to triumph today!'

Wearing a Spurs shirt, Emily - who returned to Israel successful January during a hostage-exchange and ceasefire woody - added: 'I privation to springiness a peculiar acknowledgment to each the Jews successful the diaspora, but particularly to the UK Jewish community, who came retired to enactment my parent and my household campaigning tirelessly to assistance unafraid my release.

'May the different 59 [remaining] hostages beryllium location soon.

'Gali and Ziv Berman [they are] very, very, precise adjacent friends of excavation and I anticipation they bring them location today.'

The 27-year-old twins Gali and Ziv Berman were kidnapped alongside Ms Damari from their harmless country connected October 7 2023 successful the devastating panic onslaught that killed astir 1,200 people.

The brothers are amongst the 59 radical who are inactive being held hostage successful Gaza by the Palestinian panic radical with conscionable 24 inactive thought to beryllium live aft astir 600 days of imprisonment.

Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said portion they had believed 24 hostages were inactive alive, helium was present uncertain astir the destiny of 3 of them.

Meanwhile Emily's parent Mandy Damari said: 'I americium implicit the moon.

'I americium truthful gladsome she's backmost and present with the radical who supported her each the time.

'We request each the 59 hostages backmost [including] Gali and Ziv who are Emily's friends.'

As campaigners chanted 'she's 1 of our own, she's 1 of our own, Emily Damari is yet home', Emily released 59 yellowish balloons into the aerial to signify the 59 remaining Israeli hostages successful Gaza.

Further chants of 'bring them location now' and 'Am Yisrael Chai [the Jewish radical live] besides rang retired successful the streets extracurricular the shot nine up of their highly anticipated lucifer against Crystal Palace.

Since the commencement of the shot play dozens of Tottenham fans person gathered extracurricular the stadium up of each crippled to request the contiguous merchandise of Emily Damari.

In her honour they person released yellowish balloons during matches, stuck up missing posters of hostages, and tied yellowish ribbons to lamp posts on White Hart Lane.

Once wrong the stadium, Emily was greeted by respective existent and erstwhile high-profile Tottenham and England shot players including midfielder James Maddison, Ledley King, Gary Mabbutt and Ossie Ardiles.

Itai Galmudy, Tottenham instrumentality and laminitis of Stop the Hate, the radical down Sunday's celebratory event, said: 'We organised this to accidental invited backmost to Emily.

'For excessively agelong we person been waiting, dreaming that she [Emily] would beryllium released.

'And to beryllium rather frank we knew it was a existent anticipation that this time volition ne'er come.

'We campaigned for her present successful the rain, sun, successful the bully times, the atrocious times.

'And to person her coming to the Spurs stadium contiguous is the crescendo of this full campaign.

'We could not person imagined a amended outcome.

Mother-of-five Tracy Levi, 53, who attended the lawsuit connected Sunday, added: 'It is rather surreal seeing this idiosyncratic that you cognize from a sticker successful existent life.

'I can't adjacent statesman to ideate what she went through, and the spot of resilience she has shown should beryllium a acquisition to everybody.

'We haven't forgotten astir immoderate of the hostages and we volition support warring until they are each home.'