He Israeli Army announced this Sunday that recovered the bodies of six hostages who had been captured and killed by Hamas in the October 7, 2023 attack during a music festival.
The bodies correspond to four men and two women, and were found in an underground tunnel located in the Rafah area, south of the Gaza Strip, one kilometer from where the Bedouin hostage, Kaid Farhan al Qadi, was found alive last week.
The victims were identified by Israeli authorities as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Ori Danino.
They had all been captured by the Hamas organization in the first terrorist attack during the music festival attended by hundreds of young Israelis on October 7, 2023. Army spokesman Daniel Hagari indicated that, according to an investigation,l, the six captives would have been killed by Hamas shortly before they could be found in the underground tunnels.
Joe Biden’s statement on the recovery of the body of an American citizen
US President Joe Biden has issued a statement following the recovery of the body of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an American citizen who was captured and killed by Hamas.
“Hersh was among the innocent people brutally attacked while attending a peace music festival in Israel on October 7. He lost an arm helping friends and strangers during the savage Hamas massacre”, the text adds.
The US president also expressed his deep admiration for Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s parents, Jon and Rachel, describing them as “brave, wise and steadfast” despite having endured “the unimaginable.” He highlighted their role as “relentless and unstoppable defenders” of his son and all the hostages, mourning their loss and assuring that “all Americans will have him in their prayers tonight.”
After the Army confirmed the discovery, President Isaac Herzog apologized to the relatives in a statement on behalf of the State of Israel, “for not being able to bring them home safe and sound.”
New protests in favor of the truce in Gaza
Faced with this situation, representatives and relatives of the hostages announced today new protests in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, which are added to those that have been carried out during these days and which aim to demonstrate in favor of a truce in Gaza.
“This is a direct result of the failure to sign an agreement. They were all killed in the last few days, after surviving almost 11 months of abuse, torture and starvation in Hamas captivity. The delay in signing led to their deaths (referring to the 6 victims) and that of many other hostages,” questioned the Hostage Families Forum, which pointed to the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
“In recent months, eight hostages have been rescued alive through military operations, compared with 105 hostages released in a (truce) agreement in November,” they recalled regarding the figures.
In his official communication, President Herzog promised to continue Fighting “relentlessly” against Hamas and recalled that there is a “supreme pact” between the State and its citizens that should guarantee their security.
“We have a sacred and urgent mission to bring them home,” the leader urged, referring to the 97 hostages still being held in Gaza, of whom at least 33 are believed to be dead.
Source: Ambito
