Hamas video shows ‘last messages’ of 6 slain hostages, including American Hersh Goldberg-Polin
Hamas released a propaganda video containing the purported last messages of six hostages whose bodies were discovered over the weekend, including an Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
In the pre-recorded video posted by the terrorist group's Telegram account Monday, the hostages appear gaunt and fatigued, delivering somber messages in a disturbing black-and-white format.
The video, captioned "We Will Show Their Last Messages," showcases each hostage stating their name and origin.
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Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old Israeli-American Jerusalem resident who was abducted during the Re'im music festival massacre on Oct. 7 last year, was notably missing part of his arm, a result of a grenade attack during his abduction.
The other victims seen speaking in the footage were Eden Yerushalmi, 24, Ori Danino, 25, Alex Lobanov, 32, Carmel Gat, 40, and Almog Sarusi, 27. Israeli Defense Forces discovered the bodies of all six hostages on Saturday during an operation in tunnels beneath the Rafah city in the Gaza Strip.
In another video released by Hamas, Yerushalmi calls on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "do what is necessary to release" the hostages, according to Middle East Monitor. Yerushalmi stated that the Israeli government previously released hundreds of Palestinian detainees in exchange for soldier Gilad Shalit, noting that Hamas is asking for less now for each hostage it holds.
"Am I worth less?" Yerushalmi questions.
In a statement released by the Hostages and Missing Family Forum and reported by The Times of Israel, Yerushalmi's family said that she will be missed "like crazy" and will be "forever in our hearts."
According to Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, an IDF spokesperson, the hostages were "brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them."
Over the past 11 months, Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin have been actively seeking international support for their son Hersh and other hostages.
In an early April interview with The New York Post, six months after their only son's abduction, Polin expressed frustration over the lack of progress.
"It's totally unacceptable that it's six months, and we're not yet seeing any real traction on getting our loved ones home," she said. "All of us — our political leaders, across Israel, across the U.S., Hamas, Egypt, Qatar — we're all failing [the hostages]."
The video and the tragic deaths have led to significant public outcry and protests.
Netanyahu has expressed his devastation over the "cold-blooded murder" of the hostages and criticized the actions as indicative of Hamas' reluctance to engage in peaceful negotiations.
"He who murders abductees does not want a deal," Netanyahu stated.
Hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens took to the streets in a general strike for a second consecutive day on Monday, organized by Israel's largest labor union and demanding action from the government to push for a hostage deal, CNN reported.
The union has threatened that the "entire Israeli economy will shut down."
Israel launched its offensive to eradicate Hamas, a terror group that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007, after the terror group killed around 1,200 Israelis during an Oct. 7, 2023, attack on communities in southern Israel. Around 240 individuals were taken hostage, some of which have been released and others killed. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry reports that over 40,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began. That figure doesn't differentiate between combatants and civilians.
Officials involved in mediating the ceasefire talks have been in continuous communication, discussing strategies to advance the ceasefire and hostage negotiations, sources told CNN.
However, while Netanyahu has reportedly said Israel will never leave the Philadelphi corridor, lead Hamas negotiator Khalil Al-Hayya insists there would be no agreement unless the IDF withdrew from the corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border.
Critics of Netanyahu, including some international figures, have pointed to the release of the video and the subsequent deaths of the hostages as a failure of leadership.
