![[From left to right] Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Almog Sarusi, Eden Yerushalmi, Alexander Lobanov, Carmel Gat, and Ori Danino: the six hostages murdered by Hamas in Rafah.](https://s2x5p6v6.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/hostage-collage-768x512.jpg)
Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and IDF Master-Sergeant Ori Danino – six Israelis taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7th – were found by the IDF on Saturday, shortly after they were murdered by their captors.
All, except for Gat, were kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival on Oct. 7th. Gat was kidnapped from her parent’s home in Kibbutz Be’eri.
What happened?
The six were found in a tunnel under Rafah in southern Gaza while IDF soldiers were fighting Hamas terrorists in the area. The tunnel was about a kilometer from the tunnel where Qaid Farhan Alkadi was rescued alive just last week.
In a statement on Sunday morning, IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari explained that since Alkadi’s rescue, forces in the area were instructed to act with extra caution due to the understanding that there may be more hostages in the area. Israeli forces did not have exact information about the location of the six.
According to Hagari, Hamas terrorists murdered the hostages shortly before IDF soldiers reached them.
“We share in the great sorrow of their families during this difficult time. It is impossible to put into words what the hostages have endured in Hamas captivity since October 7th, now 331 days, and what their families have been going through. This morning, this news shakes us all,” said Hagari.
Who were the six?
Carmel Gat, 39, was an occupational therapist who was supposed to start the second year of her master’s degree just a week after Oct. 7th. Her parents were murdered in the attack. Released hostages described Gat as their “guardian angel” as she taught them yoga and meditation to help them get through captivity.
Eden Yerushalmi, 24, was kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival, where she was working as a bartender. Her last words in her call to the police on Oct. 7th were, “find me, ok?”
Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, was also kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival as he and others hid in a bomb shelter. Hamas terrorists threw grenades into the shelter and Goldberg-Polin tried to throw them back out, losing his arm in the process. An Israeli-American dual citizen, his parents were one of the most vocal of the hostage families abroad advocating for their release.
Alexander Lobanov, 32, was also kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival, where he worked as a bar manager. During the attack, he helped others escape the massacre. Lobanov leaves behind his wife, Michal, and their two children, one of whom was born while he was in captivity.
Almog Sarusi, 27, was also kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival as he tried to save his girlfriend, Shahar, who was wounded in the attack. Shahar later succumbed to her wounds. Sarusi is remembered as “a guy full of life and light who loved to travel all over the country with his white jeep and his guitar.”
IDF Master-Sergeant Ori Danino, 25, was kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival after returning to try and help others escape. He was planning to start a degree in electrical engineering.
Israelis torn on how to move forward
The tragic news has left Israeli society split on how to move forward.
Many of the families of hostages have intensified the call for the government to agree to a hostage release deal, calling for labor unions and local governments to declare a nationwide strike in order to place pressure on the government.
The Headquarters for the Families of the Hostages held large protests in Tel Aviv and across the country on Sunday evening. At least 100,000 people were estimated to have attended the protest in Tel Aviv.
“The citizens of the country will join the families of the hostages to prevent the continued abandonment of the hostages by the cabinet, which has completely lost its moral and ethical path and prefers political interests over saving the lives of the hostages and the return of the victims and the murdered for burial in their country,” said the headquarters.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on the security cabinet to convene immediately and reverse the decision it made last week to insist on Israeli control of the Philadelphi corridor, the strip of land along the Egypt-Gaza border. The issue has been a sticking point, with mediators and Israel’s negotiating team warning that the demand will prevent any deal from being reached.
MK and former cabinet minister Benny Gantz accused Netanyahu of “playing for time due to political considerations.”
“The hostages die, the children of the north are exiled, and Israeli society is falling apart,” said Gantz, calling for widespread protests. “The time has come to replace the government of absolute failure.”
Arnon Bar David, the head of the Histadrut, an umbrella organization of most labor unions in Israel, announced Sunday that those under their organization would go on strike starting Monday morning.
As part of the strike, Ben-Gurion Airport will be shut down. Bar David said that he decided to launch a strike after 11 months of war due to concerns that a hostage release deal was being held up by political and not security considerations.
However, other Israelis saw the murder of the hostages as a reason to stop negotiations and focus more or even solely on military efforts against Hamas. They argued that the murders showed that the terrorist organization could not be reasoned with.
The Tikva Forum, a group of families of the hostages separate from the central headquarters, called for the government to halt negotiations for a ceasefire deal.
“Those who surrender to the bitter enemy will only receive death in the streets,” said the Forum, expressing outrage at Gallant’s call to reverse the cabinet decision concerning the Philadelphi Corridor.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stressed on Sunday that he would never allow the cabinet to sign what he deemed a “surrender deal.”
Smotrich called for the IDF to “exact heavier costs” from Hamas and “those who give it shelter and concealment.” He additionally advocated for the IDF to flatten everything within two kilometers of the border so that it “will never return to the Gazans.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that Hamas was the side holding up a deal and that Israel was still conducting intensive negotiations to reach a deal. “He who murders hostages — does not want a deal,” stressed Netanyahu.
“We, for our part, will not let up. The Israeli government is committed, and I am personally committed, to continue pursuing a deal that will return all of our hostages and guarantee our security and existence,” added the prime minister.
Biden: Make no mistake, Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes
President Joe Biden responded to the murders as well on Sunday, as Goldberg-Polin was also an American citizen.
“I am devastated and outraged. 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,” said Biden.
The president described getting to know Goldberg-Polin’s 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.”
“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,” added Biden.
Vice President Kamala Harris expressed her condolences to Goldberg-Polin’s parents stressing, “you are not alone.”
“With these murders, Hamas has even more American blood on its hands,” added Harris. “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.”
