The family of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin announced on Sunday morning that he was dead.
"With broken hearts, the Goldberg-Polin family is devastated to announce the death of their beloved son and brother, Hersh. The family thanks you all for your love and support and asks for privacy at this time," they said.
The family of hostage Eden Yerushalmi also announced that she was murdered in the captivity of Hamas. "With great sorrow we announce the murder of our Eden in the captivity of Hamas.”
The family of hostage Ori Danino also announced his murder.
Yitzhak Danino, Ori's brother, wrote in a post on Instagram, "I'm sorry my brother that I wasn't able to do everything and on time, I'll live with it forever. I know you'll watch over me from above and I can't believe I'm even able to talk about you like that."
The family of Carmel Gat also announced that she had been murdered while in captivity. Her cousin, Gil Dickmann, wrote on X, "The nightmare has come true. It was in our hands. Get out of your homes in order to stop the next murder."
On Saturday night, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit confirmed that a number of bodies were located during combat in the Gaza Strip.
"At this time, the troops are still operating in the area and are carrying out a process to extract and identify the bodies that will last several hours. We ask to refrain from spreading rumors," the statement said.
Hersh Goldberg-Polin was kidnapped at the Nova Music Festival on October 7. He was wounded in the arm by a grenade that was thrown into a shelter in which he was hiding after fleeing the party.
In April, the terrorist organization Hamas published a sign of life from Hersh. In the footage published by Hamas, he is seen with his left arm amputated and reading messages against the Israeli leadership that Hamas dictated to him.
Hersh’s parents, Jon and Rachel. spoke during the recent Democratic National Convention which was held in Chicago.
Jon Polin said during the remarks, “This is a political convention, but needing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue.”
He added that the families of the eight American hostages “are heartened that both Democratic and Republican leaders demonstrate their bipartisan support for our hostages being released” and said that both President Biden and Vice President Harris are “working tirelessly for a hostage and ceasefire deal that will bring our precious children, mothers, fathers, spouses, grandparents and grandchildren home and will stop the despair in Gaza.”
Rachel concluded the remarks by turning to her son and saying, “Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you. Stay strong. Survive.”
Two more hostages, Alexander Lobanov and Almog Sarusi, also died in captivity.
On Sunday morning, the IDF confirmed that the hostages had been murdered by their Hamas captors.
"Yesterday (Saturday), the IDF and ISA located and recovered the bodies of the hostages Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Master Sergeant Ori Danino, from an underground tunnel in the Rafah area in the Gaza Strip and returned them to Israeli territory," the IDF stated.
"They were all taken hostage on October 7th and were murdered by the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip.
"Following an identification procedure carried out by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the Israel Police, and the IDF Military Rabbinate, the IDF Manpower Directorate's Hostage team, which is responsible for accompanying the families of the hostages, notified their families. The IDF and ISA send their heartfelt condolences to the families.
"The IDF and Israeli security forces are operating with all means to bring home all the hostages as fast as possible," the IDF statement concluded.
The Hostages Families Forum said in a statement, "With deep sorrow, we once again announce the murder of 6 hostages. These 6 individuals were taken alive, endured the horrors of captivity, and were then coldly murdered."
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