A special rally was held today outside Tottenham Hotspur’s football stadium in north London to call for the release British hostage Emily Damari, with campaigners chanting “She’s one of our own” and sharing leaflets with Damari’s photo.
Damari, who marked her 28th birthday in captivity this year, is a big Spurs fan and, as the JC has reported, enjoys watching the football in the pub with her friends.
The rally on Sunday, which took place between 11.30am and 2pm outside the Spurs stadium, was organised by Stop the Hate UK.
“When we say ‘She’s one of our own’, we’re referring to the fact that she’s not only a Spurs fan, she’s a fellow Briton,” said Stop the Hate UK organiser Itai Galmudy, who was joined by some 70 other campaigners at the Spurs stadium on Sunday. “She likes dry humour, she likes a cup of tea with milk, she likes downing pints in the pub, and she happens to like Spurs as well.”
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On October 7 2023, Damari was taken from her home on Kibbutz Kfar Aza by terrorists, and her beloved dog, Choocha, was shot.
Since then, she has missed her grandfather’s death in London earlier this year, births, weddings and the numerous birthdays of her many friends.
The youngest of four siblings, Emily is the “light and life” of her family and friends, and, according to those who know her, is armed with a sharp wit. As the host of the “best barbeques on the kibbutz”, her home was frequently full of people eager to be in her presence.
Emily has always remained close to her British roots too, her family says, and loves visiting London with her mum to engage in all-too British pastimes: visiting Primark, attending Ed Sheeran and Adele concerts, and cheering on Spurs in the pub.
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A spokesman for the campiagn said: "We want people to realise that this is not an Israeli issue. This has got nothing to do with Israel and has everything to do with British values.
"We don’t leave people behind, we don’t leave wounded people on the battlefield, and it’s something that should resonate with anyone, regardless if they support Israel or don’t support Israel. Emily is a British person, and the least our government can do is acknowledge that.”
Former hostages who were held captive with her have testified to Emily’s unyielding bravery in the face of impossible circumstances, raising the spirits of her fellow captives in the dark tunnels of Gaza by leading singalongs of Boker Shel Kef (It’s a Great Morning) every day.
It has been a long time since any more reports of her condition have surfaced. Her mother, Mandy Damari, is in a “living nightmare”, she said, not knowing “what torture” – from starvation to sexual abuse – Emily is being subjected to at the hands of terrorists.
Mandy, 63, was born in Surrey and travelled to Israel to volunteer in her 20s. There, she fell in love and got married to an Israeli, had four children and eventually four grandchildren, living happily for over 30 years on Kibbutz Kfar Aza, where she taught English as a nursery schoolteacher in her free time.
That was until October 7, when her life was “turned upside down”.
The campaigners at Sunday’s Spurs match wore yellow ribbons around their necks, a common symbol displayed by campaigners for the hostages in Israel. Outside the stadium in the run-up to the match, the echoes of their chant rang out: "She’s one of our own, she’s one of our own, Emily Damari, bring Emily home.”
