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Daily Mirror
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Pulitzer Prize winner says 'I don't want to compare suffering' in poignant chat
Mosab Abu Toha, a Palestinian poet and essayist, won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for his writing on Palestinian suffering during the Israeli conflict. In an awkward interview with MSNBC this is side-lined Pulitzer Prize winner Mosab Abu Toha refused to compare suffering as he was awkwardly questioned in an interview with MSNBC 's Weekend Primetime. Abu Toha appeared on the chat-show to talk with Ayman Mohyeldin, Antonia Hylton and Catherine Rampell about winning the highest accolade within journalism. However, Rampell's line of questioning has caused reaction across social media, not least from Abu Toha himself. Rampell congratulated Mosab on his award, but in her words, it had come "not without controversy." The anchor continues to ask about the case of British-Israeli hostage, Emily Damari. As reported by the BBC , Damari was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7. Damari lost two fingers, and was then released in January 2025. The MSNBC anchor queries Abu Toha about a possible comment about whether Damari was a hostage at all. In response, he refutes this. He said: "First of all, I did not question her status as a hostage." Instead, he explains that the language used to describe those incarcerated differs depending on whether they are Israeli or Palestinian. He continues: "I have people in my family who were kidnapped from checkpoints, from schools, from shelters, and they are named prisoners. So my question is, why should Emily and other hostages be named hostages while my loved ones should be named prisoners?" He says: "I have never denied anyone's suffering. Everyone is suffering, Israelis and Palestinians. But why are our sufferings not acknowledged? Why are we called terrorists?" Abu Toha has written extensively about Palestinian suffering. On his personal pain, he said: "I was kept hostage for 53 hours. I was blind-folded, and hand-cuffed, and was beaten in my face. I asked Israeli soldiers to see a doctor, and they denied me any medical treatment. Am I less human than anyone else? So that was the question." He tells the three MSNBC anchors that 31 members of his family were killed in one airstrike. In response to Damari being held hostage for 15 months, he says "I don't want to compare suffering." But he continues on to highlight the continued plight of Palestinians, by saying: "A cousin of mine was killed in October 2023, and her body remained under the rubble for 558 days. And still, her husband and her child are still under the rubble to this day." When he is asked about his Pulitzer win, he explains that being awarded the prize is bigger than his own story. He says: "My win is not my win as Mosab, it is for the stories I shared with the whole world. And I promise you there are so many stories that I have that I haven't written." Mosab Abu Toha won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary, for his series of essays in the New Yorker on the war in Palestine. The Pulitzer Prize committee in awarding Abu Toha the prestigious prize said that his work as contributor to the New Yorker consisted of "essays on the physical and emotional carnage in Gaza that combine deep reporting with the intimacy of memoir to convey the Palestinian experience." He won the prize for four articles, which include, ' My Family's Daily Struggle to Find Food in Gaza ' and The Pain of Travelling While Palestinian,' both of which highlight the suffering caused to the Palestinian people during the Israeli conflict.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Former Israeli hostage slams Pulitzer board for awarding prize to 'modern-day Holocaust denier'
Israeli hostage Emily Damari slammed the Pulitzer Prize board's decision to grant their prestigious award to a New Yorker writer who viciously attacked her and another female Israeli captive on social media, saying the organization failed on a "question of humanity." "You claim to honor journalism that upholds truth, democracy, and human dignity. And yet you have chosen to elevate a voice that denies truth, erases victims, and desecrates the memory of the murdered," Damari posted on X. Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha was granted the Pulitzer Prize for his "essays on the physical and emotional carnage in Gaza," the board announced Monday. The award came with a $15,000 prize. Toha has frequently disparaged Israeli hostages in numerous posts on social media, including Damari. New Pulitzer Prize Winner Disparaged Israelis Kidnapped By Hamas On Oct 7, Questioned Their 'Hostage' Status "How on earth is this girl called a hostage? (And this is the case of most 'hostages'). This is Emily Damari, a 28 UK-Israeli soldier that Hamas detailed on 10/7… So this girl is called a 'hostage?' This soldier who was close to the border with a city that she and her country have been occupying is called a 'hostage?'" Toha posted about Damari on January 24, 2025. Read On The Fox News App Damari, 29, who lost two fingers in her left hand when she was dragged out of her home by Hamas terrorists during their Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel, detailed her excruciating ordeal in her response addressed to members of the Pulitzer Prizes board. "On the morning of October 7, I was at home in my small studio apartment in Kibbutz Kfar Aza when Hamas terrorists burst in, shot me and dragged me across the border into Gaza. I was one of 251 men, women, children, and elderly people kidnapped that day from their beds, their homes, and a music festival," she wrote. "For almost 500 days I lived in terror. I was starved, abused, and treated like I was less than human. I watched friends suffer. I watched hope dim. And even now, after returning home, I carry that darkness with me - because my best friends, Gali and Ziv Berman are still being held in the Hamas terror tunnels." Damari, who was freed from captivity on Jan. 19, wrote that the Pulitzer board's decision to grant the award to Toha caused her "shock and pain." She accused the Palestinian poet of "outright denials of documented atrocities" for his inflammatory posts which denied the murder of the Bibas family and that she and fellow Israeli captive Agam Berger were true hostages. "The Israeli 'hostage' Agam Berger, who was released days ago participates in her sister's graduation from an Israeli Air Force officers' course. These are the ones the world wants to share sympathy for, killers who join the army and have family in the army! These are the ones whom CNN, BBC and the likes humanize in articles and TV programs and news bulletins," Toha posted on Feb. 3, 2025. President Trump Gave Me Back My Life After 471 Days Of Hamas Captivity — Please Save The Remaining Hostages Berger, 28, is an Israeli violinist and former Gaza border scout at base Nahal Oz who was held captive in Gaza for 482 days. She revealed how she found ways to observe the Jewish Sabbath and Passover even as her captors tried to force her to convert her to Islam and how she and a fellow scout, Liri Albag, were kept in a "small room with no natural light." She was released from captivity on Jan. 30. Damari and Berger declined to comment. Toha has also denied evidence that showed the two Bibas children, 9-month-old Kfir and Ariel, 4, were killed by their captors "bare hands." He also spread the disproven claim that Israel was behind the bombing of the Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza in Oct. 2023 and appeared to deny that Israeli hostages had been tortured. Numerous Israeli hostages have testified that they were victims of or witnessed torture, including sexual assault. "Mosab Abu Toha is not a courageous writer. He is the modern-day equivalent of a Holocaust denier. And by honoring him, you have joined him in the shadows of denial," Damari told the Pulitzer board. "This is not a question of politics. This is a question of humanity. And today, you have failed it," she concluded. A Pulitzer Prize representative did not directly address Toha's award when reached for comment. "The Pulitzer Prizes for reporting, commentary, literature, and the arts are based on a review of works that have been formally submitted for consideration," a Pulitzer Prize representative told Fox News Digital. The New Yorker and Toha did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment in time for article source: Former Israeli hostage slams Pulitzer board for awarding prize to 'modern-day Holocaust denier'
Time of India
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Why this Israeli hostage is calling out the Pulitzer Prize Board
Image credits: X/@EmilyDamari1 Someone's life and their experiences might be news for you, but they are factual and experienced truths for them. In these situations, while you may not align with a side or believe the spoken word, you can never erase the occurrence of the event with your disbelief. However, according to Emily Damari , a victim of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, that is what Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Mosab Abu Toha did. The 28-year-old British-Israeli citizen, who is a native of the Kibbutz Kfar Aza region in Israel, shared how the physical and mental atrocities faced by her and her friends and family were belittled and denied by Palestinian writer and poet Mosab Abu Toha who has been awarded by the Pulitzer Prize as for best commentary through his series of New Yorker essays on the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza. Operation Sindoor India foils Pakistan's attack on Jammu airport: What we know so far How India used 'Sudarshan Chakra' to take down Pak drones, missiles Operation Sindoor: Several airports in India closed - check full list She took to X to share how she was shocked and pained to see that the Pulitzer Prize was awarded to the journalist who in January questioned her captivity by the Hamas terrorists, denied the murder of the Bibas family and even questioned whether Agam Berger was truly a hostage. "You claim to honor journalism that upholds truth, democracy, and human dignity. And yet you have chosen to elevate a voice that denies truth, erases victims, and desecrates the memory of the murdered," wrote Damari on X. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 2025 Top Trending local enterprise accounting software [Click Here] Esseps Learn More Undo She added how by awarding Toha, Pulitzer had joined his "shadows of denial" writing, Do you not see what this means? Mosab Abu Toha is not a courageous writer. He is the modern-day equivalent of a Holocaust denier. And by honoring him, you have joined him in the shadows of denial.' 'This is not a question of politics. This is a question of humanity. And today, you have failed it,' she completed. Image credits: X/@Ceasefire_Track Damari, along with 251 men, women and children, was taken hostage by Hamas terrorists on the morning of October 7, 2023. She shared how the terrorists burst into her small studio apartment, shot her in the hand and leg and dragged her across the border into Gaza. She was held captive for almost 500 days, during which she was starved, abused and treated 'less than human.' She added how even after returning back she still carries the darkness of the experience with herself as her best friends still remain held in the Hamas 'horror tunnels. ' While Toha may have been supporting his own side and Damari stands by the atrocities she faced, it still does not lessen the truth of her haunting experiences, which are shared by many across both borders. However, what does remain in point is the fact that Toha did question and belittle the unfortunate experiences of many Israelis. Toha made several social media posts asking if Damari and other female Israel Defence Forces Soldiers could be considered hostages. 'How on earth is this girl called a hostage,' he wrote. 'This soldier who was close to the border with a city that she and her country have been occupying is called a 'hostage''' he added. As Damari mentioned in her post, the 32-year-old journalist made similar comments about the freed IDF soldier Agam Berger, labelling her as a 'killer' rather than a hostage. Additionally, he slammed the reports of infants Kfir and Ariel Bibas being killed by Hamas by their 'bare hands', claiming it to be propaganda. Damari condemned the journalist's actions, writing, 'These are not word games - they are outright denials of documented atrocities.' What needs to be remembered here is that someone's pain can not be diminished just because it can not be felt by you. Ever since the Israel-Hamas war began, thousands of uninvolved victims have been injured and killed, and while one may not align with the ideals of either side, it is important to understand the pain and suffering of both, which, according to Damari, Toha did not.
New York Post
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Emily Damari rips Pulitzer Prize board for Mosab Abu Toha award
A former Hamas hostage slammed the Pulitzer Prize board for awarding a Gaza poet and New Yorker contributor who disputed her and others' status as captives and whether the Bibas family was murdered by the terrorist group. Emily Damari, a British-Israel citizen, said she was shocked that the board would recognize Mosab Abu Toha with a Pulitzer for his essays on the Gaza war after he made light of the suffering she endured for 471 days under Hamas' custody. 'You claim to honor journalism that upholds truth, democracy, and human dignity. And yet you have chosen to elevate a voice that denies truth, erases victims, and desecrates the memory of the murdered,' Damari wrote on X. Advertisement 3 Mosab Abu Toha was awarded a 2025 Pulitzer Prize. Facebook / Mosab Abu Toha 3 Emily Damari wrote that Toha 'denies truth, erases victims, and desecrates the memory of the murdered.' 3 The Gaza poet and New Yorker contributor questioned if Damari and other IDF soldiers should be considered hostages after they were kidnapped on Oct. 7, 2023. Facebook / Mosab Abu Toha Advertisement 'Mosab Abu Toha is not a courageous writer. He is the modern-day equivalent of a Holocaust denier,' she added. 'And by honoring him, you have joined him in the shadows of denial.' Following his win earlier this week, it was revealed that Abu Toha had made several posts on social media questioning if Damari and other female Israel Defense Forces soldiers should be considered hostages after they were kidnapped on Oct. 7, 2023.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari says scars show 'freedom' as she undergoes surgery
A British-Israeli woman who endured 15 months of captivity at the hands of Hamas has spoken about the profound symbolism of her scars as she received treatment for injuries dating back to the October 7 attacks. Emily Damari, 28, recounted her harrowing experience: taken right from her doorstep in Kibbutz Kfar Aza during a morning assault by Hamas in 2023 and sustaining a gunshot wound to her hand, then blindfolded and shoved into her car with two companions, her family earlier disclosed. Emily Damari was held prisoner for a total of 471 days under harsh conditions and with negligible medical care. Now, she's bravely facing a succession of intricate surgeries on her hand and leg to mend the wounds inflicted both during the attack and throughout her time in captivity. Before undergoing surgery at Sheba Medical Centre in Israel, Ms Damari reflected: "I have fully embraced my hand, my pain and my scars. To me, they represent freedom, hope and strength." READ MORE: Shoppers name the UK's best supermarket - and it's not Tesco, Aldi, or Sainsbury's READ MORE: 'We spent £85k to have twins in Cyprus via surrogate - now we're stuck' Despite acknowledging that her hand will not completely heal and expressing the "intense pain" post-operation in Gaza which haunted her for over a year. Her mother, Mandy Damari, who hails from Beckenham in the southeast of London, vividly remembered her daughter being "sewn up like a pin cushion" while in Gaza, marveling at the lack of any life-threatening infections as nothing less than miraculous. Released on January 19, Emily Damari was among the initial trio of hostages liberated following a ceasefire agreement struck between Israel and Hamas. Romi Gonen, 24, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, joined her in freedom. . Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hailed her release as "wonderful and long-overdue news", and had a phone conversation with Ms Damari and her mother. Looking for more from MyLondon? Subscribe to our daily newsletters here for the latest and greatest updates from across London.
