Briefly reunited with Noa

Mother of freed hostage succumbs to cancer

Noa Argamani in the arms of her father(Bild: AFP)

A good three weeks after her daughter Noa was freed from Hamas violence in the Gaza Strip, the seriously ill Liora Argamani has died. Before Noa's liberation, the deceased attracted worldwide attention with touching video messages. 

The Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv and the Forum of Hostage Families confirmed the woman's death. She was 61 years old, the media reported. Benny Gantz, until recently a member of the now dissolved war cabinet, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed their condolences to Noa and her father.

Mother touched the world
Liora had made several public pleas in heart-rending videos to be able to see her kidnapped daughter again before she died. Just over three weeks ago, an Israeli special unit rescued 25-year-old Noa together with three other hostages from the hands of the Islamist Hamas.

The fate of the young Israeli woman, who was kidnapped from the Nova music festival, has long touched the country and many people beyond. Footage of her being abducted by terrorists on a motorcycle, crying desperately for help, went around the world. Her boyfriend, who was also kidnapped at the time, is still a hostage in the Gaza Strip.

At a demonstration against the Israeli government at the weekend, Noa made her first public appeal against hatred since her liberation. "I wish us all more peaceful days, calmer days, when we are surrounded by family, friends and good people. The most important thing is that we learn to love and not hate," she said in a video message shown at a rally in the coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv on Saturday.