Romi Gonen, who was released from Hamas captivity on Sunday, thanked the people of Israel for their support and prayers overnight Tuesday in her first social media post in over 471 days.
"There is life after death," she wrote on Instagram.
Sharing a picture of the reunion with her mother, Gonen expressed her gratitude to "the people of Israel, to family, to friends."
"The prayers and strength you sent accompanied us the entire way and helped us believe that this nightmare would eventually end," she wrote.
"We must remember that there are 94 more hostages who are simply dying for us to save them,” Gonen noted. She concluded her message with, "Am Yisrael Chai ['the people of Israel live'], and with God’s help, we will continue to receive good news in the coming weeks."
Gonen, 24, and the other two released hostages, Emily Damari, 28, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, were handed over by Hamas to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross in the Gaza Strip on Sunday night as part of an Israeli ceasefire agreement with the terror group.
Following an initial medical examination at the Israel Defense Forces reception point near the Gaza border and their subsequent transfer to a hospital via helicopter, Tel Hashomer General Hospital Director Dr. Yael Frenkel Nir told local media that the women’s physical condition was good enough to allow them to focus on reuniting with family members.
Damari took to Instagram on Monday, thanking her family, friends and God for her release. "I have returned to life, my loved ones," she wrote.
"I have only managed to see just a tiny bit of everything, and you have exploded my heart from emotion. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I am the happiest person in the world, just to be," Damari added.
Damari lost two of her fingers when she was shot by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023, kidnapping from her home in the border community of Kfar Aza.
In a Channel 12 News report vetted by Israel’s military censor and approved by the hostages that was published on Monday, the three captives recalled living in underground facilities with little medical attention, tremendous uncertainty and, at times, despair.
Ninety-four hostages remain in captivity, 30 of whom are to return to Israel in the coming weeks during the first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire. The remaining 64 hostages are to be released in the second and third phases, according to a schedule that has yet to be announced.
Republished with permission from Jewish News Syndicate.