Israel announced Sunday that it had recovered the bodies of six hostages, including Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, in a tunnel in Rafah, Gaza, with the Israeli military saying Hamas had killed all six a short time before troops arrived.
Goldberg-Polin’s parents spoke at the Democratic National Convention in August as the United Center audience chanted, “Bring them home.”
Goldberg-Polin, 23, attended the Nova music festival near the border with Gaza on October 7, taking temporary refuge in a nearby bomb shelter. As Hamas terrorists tossed grenades into the bunker, Goldberg-Polin threw them out before one exploded in his hand, severing his arm at the elbow. The terrorists then abducted him, and he was not heard from until appearing in a hostage video in April.
“With broken hearts, the Goldberg-Polin family is devastated to announce the death of their beloved son and brother, Hersh,” the family wrote in a statement. “The family thanks you all for your love and support and asks for privacy at this time.”
Hamas abducted four other hostages — Ori Danino, 25; Alexander Lobanov, 33; Almog Sarusi, 27; and Eden Yerushalmi, 24 — from the Nova festival and the sixth, 40-year-old Carmel Gat, from the nearby Kibbutz Be’eri.
As National Review‘s Phil Klein noted Sunday morning, both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris had warned Israel against a large-scale incursion into Rafah even after the Jewish state had rescued two hostages in the city. Biden threatened to withhold military aid to Israel should it carry out such an operation, while Harris, after “studying the maps,” said Israel might face “consequences” if it did so.
“I am devastated and outraged,” Biden said in a late-night press release.
Hersh was among the innocents brutally attacked while attending a music festival for peace in Israel on October 7. He lost his arm helping friends and strangers during Hamas’ savage massacre. He had just turned 23. He planned to travel the world. I have gotten to know his parents, Jon and Rachel. They have been courageous, wise, and steadfast, even as they have endured the unimaginable. They have been relentless and irrepressible champions of their son and of all the hostages held in unconscionable conditions. I admire them and grieve with them more deeply than words can express. I know all Americans tonight will have them in their prayers, just as Jill and I will. I have worked tirelessly to bring their beloved Hersh safely to them and am heartbroken by the news of his death. It is as tragic as it is reprehensible. Make no mistake, Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes. And we will keep working around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages.
Harris issued her own statement, recounting a meeting with Goldberg-Polin’s parents during which she told them they were “not alone.”
“Hamas is an evil terrorist organization,” she wrote. “With these murders, Hamas has even more American blood on its hands. I strongly condemn Hamas’ continued brutality, and so must the entire world. From its massacre of 1,200 people to sexual violence, taking of hostages, and these murders, Hamas’ depravity is evident and horrifying. The threat Hamas poses to the people of Israel—and American citizens in Israel—must be eliminated and Hamas cannot control Gaza. The Palestinian people too have suffered under Hamas’ rule for nearly two decades. As Vice President, I have no higher priority than the safety of American citizens, wherever they are in the world. President Biden and I will never waver in our commitment to free the Americans and all those held hostage in Gaza.”