Mia Leimberg, aged 17, has been released from captivity after being held hostage along with her mother Gabriela, and their dog Bella by the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. They are reunited with Mia's father, Moshe, at their home in Jerusalem on December 5, 2023.
Mia Leimberg, a 17-year-old Israeli hostage freed by Hamas in a recent exchange for Palestinian prisoners during a cease-fire, shared her story of resilience and companionship with her dog, Bella. Speaking to Reuters on Tuesday, Leimberg described how Bella, a Shih Tzu, played a crucial role in her coping with captivity.
Leimberg recounted that she concealed Bella under her pajama shirt when taken hostage, and the dog's quiet demeanor helped avoid detection. Despite the challenges of bringing a small puppy on the journey, Leimberg's family provided leftovers to ensure Bella's well-being while they were held captive. Only when Hamas instructed Leimberg to climb a ladder did they discover Bella was a living pet, not a doll. Surprisingly, the militants allowed her to keep the dog in a birdcage within their labyrinthine caves under Gaza.
"Bella was a huge help to me. She kept me busy. She was moral support, even though she didn't want to be," Leimberg expressed in the interview. Although her captivity was a difficult experience, she emphasized that she didn't feel traumatized and was in good physical health. Leimberg highlighted the ongoing need to free the remaining hostages from the October 7th terror attack, estimated to be around 140 individuals still held in Gaza.
While expressing gratitude for her return, Leimberg insisted that efforts must continue to bring everyone back. Her father credited her determination to protect Bella as a key factor in ensuring her safe return, quoting her newfound expression of love for the dog: "I love you, to Gaza and back."
