Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen condemned Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar for referring to Emily Hand, the eight-year-old Israel-Israeli citizen who was released last night after being kidnapped during the massacre of October 7 as "lost."
"Mr. Prime Minister, It seems you have lost your moral compass and need a reality check!," Cohen wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "Emily Hand was not “lost”, she was kidnapped by a terror organization worse than ISIS that murdered her stepmother."
"Emily and more than 30 other Israeli children were taken hostage by Hamas, and you Leo Varadkar are trying to legitimize and normalize terror. Shame on you!" the Foreign Minister added.
Varadkar had earlier written on X: “This is a day of enormous joy and relief for Emily Hand and her family. An innocent child who was lost has now been found and returned, and we breathe a massive sigh of relief. Our prayers have been answered."
The Irish Prime Minister made no mention of the fact that Hand was held by Hamas terrorists for 50 days, or of the massacre they perpetrated in Israel on October 7 when they abducted Hand and about 240 other people.
Varadkar’s post was reposted and criticized many times in Israel and by supporters of Israel.
AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby in the US, wrote, “Lost?! She didn’t go for a walk and get confused trying to find her way home. Emily was kidnapped by Hamas.”
“She wasn’t merely found, the terrorists who took her knew where she was for 49 days. She was returned because the IDF rightfully pressured Hamas to give her back.”
Channel 12 News’ European correspondent Elad Simchayoff wrote, “Emily wasn’t ‘lost’, she was abducted by terrorists who hold information about civilian hostages as a bargaining chip.”
“Emily wasn’t ‘found’, she was exchanged for prisoners held for terror offences. You’re the PM of Ireland, Emily is an Irish citizen. Your prayers didn’t do a damn thing. Neither did your tweet.”
Yediot Aharonot columnist Nadav Eyal also commented on Varadkar’s post, “Lost? ‘Now been found and returned’. Emily was taken by the monstrous Hamas, kidnapped. Her stepmother was murdered, and her friends were slaughtered. This tweet is insane. It's worse than a lie.” Emily's mother died of cancer several years ago.
“Is the PM of Ireland afraid of the Pro-Hamas crowd in his country? Disgraceful. This is just Orwell's 1984. I feel sorry for Ireland for having such a coward as its PM, to the extent he'll portray a vicious terrorist attack against an Irish child and her family as a missing person story. Very far from any notion of leadership,” added Eyal.