'She's a bright light': 4-year-old Hamas hostage reunited with family
The family of Abigail Mor Edan, the 4-year-old American-Israeli girl who was held hostage by Hamas, is working to restore a sense of normalcy for the child after she spent over 50 days in captivity, her great-aunt told The Christian Post.
Hamas took Abigail hostage during its surprise attack against Israel on Oct. 7, an assault that resulted in the slaughter of at least 1,200 people and the abduction of around 240 others. The terror group killed Abigail's parents and kidnapped her when it invaded the Kibbutz Kfar Azza. The child celebrated her fourth birthday while in captivity.
She was released during a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and handed over to Red Cross officials on Nov. 26. The child was then taken to the Schneider Children's Medical Center in Israel for an evaluation following her release.
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In an interview, Abigail's great-aunt Liz Hirsh Naftali said they are trying to restore a sense of normalcy for the 4-year-old and her siblings so that they may have a "beautiful life."
"But what I can tell you and what I want people to know is that [Abigail] is OK," Naftali said. "She has so much love and support, and she's a smart little girl. She's magical; she's a bright light, and she has lots of beautiful energy."
At the time of the interview last Friday, Naftali told CP that Abigail had been out of the hospital for at least 18 days, adding that the child is now playing with her siblings. The three siblings are being cared for by an aunt, uncle and their grandparents.
Naftali has shared Abigail's story with U.S. lawmakers and with the media following the child's abduction. She believes that sharing her great-niece's story, as well as the stories of the other hostages, will help humanize them.
"These are real people," she said. "There are still [129] of them — women, men, children, grandparents, sisters, brothers — these are human beings who haven't been home for Thanksgiving; they're not home on Friday evening for dinner."
Last Wednesday, Naftali met with President Joe Biden alongside other family members of American hostages held by Hamas. She told CP that the president and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken listened to each family's story.
Naftali noted that, like most people whose family members were taken hostage by Hamas, she has spent a lot of time meeting with lawmakers from all sides of the political aisle. She has not noticed any signs of partisanship regarding this issue.
"This is just about humanity and bringing back these hostages," she said. "And so that has been a really important message."
While the individuals still in captivity were not returned to their families in time for Chanukah, Naftali prays the remaining hostages are released and can return to their families for Christmas.
Recalling the details of her great-niece's abduction, Naftali shared that the family initially believed that Hamas killed the girl and her parents. Abigail's older sister and brother, who are 6 and 10, respectively, witnessed their parents' murder and hid for 14 hours to avoid the same fate.
While the older pair of siblings were eventually rescued, the 4-year-old crawled out from underneath her father's dead body at some point and wandered over to a neighbor's house. The toddler was put in the safe room with her neighbors. The family later learned she was kidnapped through a witness who saw terrorists marching the neighbors and Abigail off the kibbutz.
Naftali called Abigail's return to the family a "miracle," as the family had been praying to be reunited with the young child. Naftali said it's "heartbreaking" that her niece and siblings lost their parents and that Abigail was held hostage by Hamas.
"If there's any little silver lining, it's the incredible outpouring of love and support and prayer from people all over the world, different religions, different races, that have reached out to us and different parts of our family, just to say, 'We're here for you, we're praying for Abigail, we're praying for all these hostages,'" Naftali said.
"And that has been really nourishing, and that has been illuminating all of us in this dark, dark time," she added.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
