The bodies of 6 hostages, including Hersh Goldberg-Polin, has been recovered from a tunnel under Rafah on Saturday night.
The Israeli military confirmed this on Sunday morning and accused Hamas terrorists of brutally murdering the hostages, three of whom were already expected to be released in the first phase of a proposed cease-fire deal between Gaza and Israel.
According to the military, the other 5 hostages found dead close to where another hostage, Farhan al-Qadi, who was rescued alive last week, are named as follows:
- Ori Danino (25)
- Eden Yerushalmi (24)
- Almog Sarusi (27)
- Alexander Lobanov (33)
- Carmel Gat (40)
Hersh Goldberg-Polin was 23 years old when he was abducted, along with other concertgoers, by Hamas at the Nova music festival in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. The Israeli-American is one of the most well-known hostages who were taken to Gaza. Before his death, he appeared in a video released by Hamas in April, where he pleaded with the Israeli government to listen to the demands of his captors.
Hamas has asked for an end to the war and demanded that Israel withdraw its forces and set Palestinian prisoners free. In turn, they, too, will see to the safe release of Israeli hostages.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has responded to this tragic incident by vowing to “not relent” in pursuing the “Hamas terrorists who murdered our hostages.”
“Together with the entire nation, my wife and I share in the families’ deep mourning. I would like to express deep appreciation for our forces, for the brave IDF soldiers and ISA fighters, who risked their lives in order to return our sons and daughters.
I say to the Hamas terrorists who murdered our hostages and I say to their leaders: You will pay the price. We will not rest, nor will be silent. We will pursue you, we will find you and we will settle accounts with you.”
On the other hand, Izzat al-Rishq, who is a senior official of Hamas, said that the hostages, whose bodies were retrieved over the weekend, would have still been alive if Israel had accepted the cease-fire proposal back in July.