‘It must serve as wakeup call’: Hersh’s family okays release of Hamas propaganda clip
Goldberg-Polins say video should spark action to release hostages; in undated footage, American-Israeli urges relatives to ‘stay strong,’ just as they told him to do for 11 months
Hamas on Thursday released a propaganda video of slain hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, which his grieving family described as a “wakeup call” for the world to act for the release of the remaining captives in Gaza.
“No other family should endure what we went through,” said a statement from the 23-year-old American-Israeli’s family, urging the public dissemination of the video, which was posted by the terror group while the Goldberg-Polins were still marking the seven-day Jewish Shiva mourning period.
Goldberg-Polin was buried on Monday after his body, along with those of five other murdered hostages, was recovered by the IDF on Saturday. The army said the six were executed by their Hamas captors roughly 48 to 72 hours before soldiers arrived at the Rafah tunnel where they were found. It is believed that they were killed after their guards were tipped off on approaching Israeli troops.
Goldberg-Polin’s family said the Hamas video “must serve as an immediate wakeup call to the world to act today to secure the release of the remaining 101 hostages before it is too late.”
Hamas has previously issued similar videos of hostages it is holding, in what Israel says is psychological warfare.
Thursday’s clip was the latest in a series that Hamas pledged to release at the beginning of the week, featuring the six murdered hostages.
Brought back to Israel along with Goldberg-Polin were Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi.
Earlier this week, Hamas published videos of Yerushalmi, Danino, Gat and Lobanov.
In her video, Gat gave her age as 39; she turned 40 in May while in captivity, indicating that at least her clip was likely filmed several months ago.
Israeli authorities and human rights groups, and several freed hostages, have said that captives are coerced into making their remarks in such videos. Israeli media outlets generally publish them only if their families request that they do so.
It was not immediately known when the video of Goldberg-Polin was filmed.
Unlike a previous clip of him issued by Hamas in April that was in Hebrew, Goldberg-Polin speaks English in the latest one.
He introduces himself, says he was born in Berkeley, California, that he currently lives in Jerusalem, Israel, and that he is a dual US-Israeli citizen.
Goldberg-Polin became one of the most recognizable hostages globally — because of how he survived the October 7 onslaught after having his left forearm blown off by a hand grenade and because of the unyielding campaign his parents waged for his release.
“I turned 23 four days before I was kidnapped at the party in the Re’im Forest on the seventh of October,” he says, referring to the Nova music festival.
“Since I arrived in Gaza, I’ve survived with almost no medical care, little food and little water. I can’t remember the last time I saw the sun or took a breath of fresh air,” he says, highlighting “non-stop” IDF airstrikes and criticizing the Israeli government.
Goldberg-Polin then makes a plea to US President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and all American citizens “to do everything you can to stop the war, stop this madness and to bring me home.”
The short clip ends with the 23-year-old offering a message to his family. “Mama, Dada, Leebie and Orly, I love you, I miss you, and I’m thinking about you every single day. I know you’re doing everything you can and that you’re out in the streets trying to bring me home.”
“Now, I need you to stay strong for me,” he says, in an echo of part of the message his mother Rachel has given when addressing her son at the end of speeches to raise awareness of the hostages’ plight across the globe: “Hersh, if you can hear me, I love you. Stay strong. Survive,” she has said.
The clip of Goldberg-Polin ends with him saying, “Keep on fighting, and hopefully, I believe I’ll be home soon. Don’t stop. I love you.”
The six hostages were among the 251 people abducted to Gaza on October 7 when Palestinian terror group Hamas led a devastating cross-border assault on Israel that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
Their deaths triggered a surge in demonstrations calling on the government to reach a hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas. Netanyahu has come under particular fire amid allegations that he is avoiding a deal to satisfy far-right elements of his coalition who fear an agreement would bring a permanent end to the war before the stated goal of destroying Hamas is achieved.
Israel responded to the October 7 attack with a military campaign to destroy the terror group, topple its Gaza regime, and free the hostages.
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