"Tearful Funeral: 'Asking for Forgiveness' and 'Hostages Remaining with Hamas Must Be Rescued'"

The funeral of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin (23), who was abducted by Hamas last October and eventually found dead in the Gaza Strip, was held on the 2nd (local time) in Jerusalem, Israel. He was a dual citizen of the United States and Israel and one of six hostages whose bodies were recovered by the Israeli military from tunnels in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

According to the New York Times (NYT) and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the funeral took place in Jerusalem with thousands of mourners attending, including Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Jacob Ryu, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. Friends of Goldberg-Polin, as well as many calling for a ceasefire in Gaza to secure the release of hostages, were also present in large numbers.

To rescue their kidnapped son, Goldberg-Polin’s parents traveled around the world for the past 11 months, meeting U.S. President Joe Biden, UN Secretary-General Ant?nio Guterres, and Pope Francis. At the funeral, they described the past period as a "long journey of torture."

Following Jewish tradition, Goldberg-Polin’s mother, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, wearing a torn white shirt, stood at the podium and said in her eulogy, "I have tried to suppress the longing for you because I was certain that feeling would break me," expressing her grief. "Finally, my beloved son, you are free at last," she said. The NYT reported that this was a slight relief that her son no longer had to tremble in danger.

Born in California, USA, Goldberg-Polin immigrated to Jerusalem at the age of seven. On October 7 last year, when Hamas launched a surprise attack, he was attending the Nova Music Festival to celebrate his 23rd birthday when he was abducted by Hamas. In a video released by Hamas last April, Goldberg-Polin appeared emaciated and with an amputated arm, urging the Israeli government to negotiate. The Israeli military found his body in the Rafah tunnels on the 31st of last month. According to the Israeli health authorities, the autopsy confirmed that Goldberg-Polin and other hostages were killed by close-range gunfire around the 26th to 27th of the same month.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

At the funeral, President Herzog said, "On behalf of the State of Israel, I ask for forgiveness. I apologize that the country you immigrated to at age seven could not keep you safe," expressing regret for failing to protect and rescue the hostages. He also made remarks aimed at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, urging national leaders to do whatever is necessary to rescue the remaining hostages. He emphasized, "This is not a political goal and must not become a political dispute," adding, "It is the highest moral, Jewish, and human duty that the State of Israel holds toward its citizens."

Goldberg-Polin’s parents stated, "Now, the six (hostages who died) will be remembered together," expressing hope that their son’s death will become a turning point for Israel. His father, John Polin, said, "Perhaps your death will be the stone, the fuel that brings the remaining 101 hostages home." According to officials from the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, 101 hostages are held captive in Gaza, with an estimated 35 already deceased. The WSJ reported that Jews say at funerals, "May their memory be a blessing," hoping the deceased’s life and legacy positively influence those left behind. On this day, John Polin changed it to "May your memory be a revolution," the report added.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

Currently, in Israel, protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza have continued since the discovery of the bodies of six hostages, including Goldberg-Polin. The protests held across Israel from the previous night until this night are understood to be the largest since the outbreak of the Gaza war. The Israeli Hostages and Missing Families Forum reported that at least 700,000 people nationwide participated in the protests, including 550,000 in Tel Aviv alone. The Histadrut, Israel’s largest labor union with 800,000 members, also held a general strike on the 2nd.

However, Prime Minister Netanyahu reaffirmed his intention to station troops in the buffer zone of the Gaza-Egypt border, the Philadelphi Corridor, showing he will not yield despite large-scale opposition protests. He claimed, "No one is more dedicated to the release of hostages than I am. No one can lecture me," asserting that Hamas only showed willingness to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage release after the Israeli military entered southern Gaza’s Rafah and the Philadelphi Corridor.

Meanwhile, Hamas, which released videos of the six hostages while alive, threatened additional hostage killings on the same day and urged Israel to negotiate a ceasefire. In a statement, Hamas said, "If the occupying forces (Israeli military) approach the detention sites, new instructions regarding the hostages have been issued," adding, "If Netanyahu insists on releasing them through military pressure without negotiations, it means they will be trapped in coffins and returned to their families."