By Raul Castillo
01 Sep 2024, 15:12 PM EDT
The United States confirmed in the early hours of Sunday that Israeli forces found the lifeless bodies of six hostages in a tunnel in Gaza, including that of young American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
The death of Goldberg-Polin, 23, a California native, was confirmed by his family in a Facebook post.
“The Goldberg-Polin family is heartbroken to announce the passing of their beloved son and brother, Hersh. The family thanks everyone for their love and support and asks for privacy at this time,” the family wrote.
Hersh Goldberg-Polin was born in the United States and moved to Israel with his family when he was 7, according to the Hostages Families Forum. He was the older brother of two sisters and a fan of the Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team.
When was he last seen?
Just four months ago, in a propaganda video released by Hamas on April 24, Hersh could be seen in good health, reading a message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for not doing enough to free the hostages, of which 103 remained as of yesterday.
“Benjamin Netanyahu and his government should be ashamed,” said the young man in his twenties, who lost a hand during the Hamas attacks on October 7.
On the day of the attack, a video emerged showing the Israeli-American wounded by a grenade explosion that blew off his left forearm. The video then shows him being loaded at gunpoint onto a truck apparently headed for Gaza during the chaotic violence at the Supernova music festival in southern Israel, near Kibbutz Re’im.
“He lost his arm helping friends and strangers during the savage Hamas massacre. He had just turned 23 and was planning to travel the world,” President Joe Biden said in a statement after his body was found.
Active family
Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s family is one of the most active in the fight for the return of the captives. In November, her mother Rachel was one of 12 relatives who met with Pope Francis at the Vatican, and the two parents have always been vocal about the urgency of reaching a truce agreement.
“Hersh, we are working day and night and we will never stop,” Rachel Goldberg-Polin reiterated on August 29, when a convoy with relatives of the hostages traveled to the Gaza border to demand the release of their loved ones.
In July, Goldberg-Polin’s parents joined the families of other American hostages during Netanyahu’s visit to D.C. to again share their message: Bring the hostages home now.
With information from EFE.
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