Which 6 Hostages Were Found by Israeli Military in Gaza?

JERUSALEM—Israel confirmed early Sunday that the bodies of six hostages captured during the Hamas terrorist group’s Oct. 7 attack that sparked the Gaza conflict had been recovered. This included Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, whose parents had been at the forefront of a public campaign for the release of the captives.

The military stated that Hamas had murdered the six hostages shortly before Israeli forces planned to rescue them, and their bodies were discovered in a tunnel underneath the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Goldberg-Polin and four other hostages were taken from a music festival where Hamas militants killed many people. The sixth hostage was seized from a nearby farming community.

Here is a description of the hostages:

Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23

The Berkeley native lost part of his left arm in a grenade explosion during the Oct. 7 attack. A video released by Hamas in April showed him with his left hand missing.

His U.S.-born immigrant parents in Israel became prominent figures in the campaign for the hostages’ release. They met with U.S. President Joe Biden, Pope Francis, and other leaders, and spoke at the United Nations, urging the liberation of all hostages.

On Aug. 21, his parents addressed the Democratic National Convention.

“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,” said his father, Jon Polin. His mother, Rachel, who bowed her head during the ovation and touched her chest, said: “Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you, stay strong, survive.”

They actively humanized their son and the other captives, portraying Hersh as a music and soccer enthusiast and a traveler with aspirations to attend university after completing his military service. At events, Rachel often directl addressed her son, encouraging him to endure another day.

Both wore stickers with the number 320, representing the days their son had been held. It had become a daily ritual—tear off a fresh piece of tape, write down another day.

Related Stories

They sought to keep their son and the other captives from being reduced to numbers, describing Hersh as a music and soccer lover and traveler with plans to attend university since his military service had ended. At events, Rachel often addressed her son directly, urging him to live another day.

Both wore stickers with the number 320, representing the number of days their son had been held. It had long become part of a morning ritual—tear a new piece of tape, write down another day.

Eden Yerushalmi, 24

The Tel Aviv-born Yerushalmi loved spending summer days at the beach and was studying to become a Pilates instructor, according to the Hostage Families Forum, which has been leading advocacy efforts for the captives’ release.

She was working as a bartender at the open-air Tribe of Nova music festival. When Hamas’s initial rocket attack set off air raid sirens she sent a video to her family, saying she was leaving the party. During the attack, she called the police and was in contact with her sisters over the next four hours, the forum said.

“They’ve caught me,” were her last words to them.

Carmel Gat, 40

The occupational therapist from Tel Aviv was “full of compassion and love,” and enjoyed solo travel, rock concerts, and the band Radiohead, according to the forum.

She was staying with her parents in Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the hardest-hit communities, when terrorists broke into their home and kidnapped her on the morning of Oct. 7. Her parents were killed in the attack.

Hostages who were released during a cease-fire in November said she taught them meditation and yoga exercises to help them survive in captivity.

Alexander Lobanov, 33

Lobanov was a married father of a two-year-old and a five-month-old baby born while he was in captivity. He was also kidnapped from the music festival, where he had worked as a bar manager.

The forum, citing witnesses, said he helped evacuate people from the festival and ran with others before being abducted.

Almog Sarusi, 27

The forum described Sarusi as a “vibrant, positive person who loved traveling around Israel in his white jeep with his guitar.” He was at the music festival with his girlfriend of five years, who was killed in the attack.

The forum said Sarusi stayed with her after she was wounded and was then abducted.

Ori Danino, 25

The Jerusalem-born Danino was the eldest of five siblings and planned to study electrical engineering. “Ori was known for his ambition, love for people, and was beloved by all. He loved nature and was very handy,” the forum said.

It said he was kidnapped from the Nova festival while driving back and trying to help others to escape.