'Beloved' Irish-Israeli woman confirmed dead as conflict intensifies in Gaza

The family of an Irish-Israeli woman has remembered her as a 'beloved' niece after it was confirmed she was one of 260 people killed by Hamas at a music festival.

Kim Damti, 22, had been missing since Saturday when militants stormed the Supernova music festival in Re'im in Israel.

Her family announced that she had died in a statement.

In the Dáil (Irish Parliament), Tánaiste Micheál Martin paid tribute to her during Leader's Questions on Thursday.

"Anyone looking at the photo of Kim in the media in that last few days will have been struck by the radiance and energy in her expression," he said.

"A young 22-year-old with her full life ahead of her, to be cut down in such a barbaric way.

"So our thoughts are with her family in particular at this very sad moment."

2,700 lives have been lost to date from both sides of this most recent war.

A protracted conflict which is intensifying day by day.

Fra Hughes has witnessed destruction in Gaza with his own eyes. In 2010, he visited the region and has provided more than £45,000 in aid since that visit.

"We took a 13-seater wheelchair accessible ambulance," he told UTV.

"We were 35 days on the road.

"We stayed for three days so we saw the devastation that came about after Operation Cast Lead."

He described in an interview with UTV what the people of Gaza are currently facing. Israel has retaliated since Saturday's infiltration, cutting off water and supplies to Gaza, as well as electricity.

"What you have in Gaza now is 2.5m people," he said. "Now that's the population of Northern Ireland.

"Gaza is less than 1% of original historic Palestine. It's 25 miles by six miles so if you put the whole population of the north of Ireland into the Ards Peninsula, that's what we're talking about."

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