Hersh Goldberg-Polin

Hersh Goldberg-Polin was born in 2000 in Oakland

Goldberg-Polin was born in Berkeley, California, to Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, who both came from the Chicago area. He lived in Richmond, Virginia, and moved to Israel with his family in 2008. He had two younger sisters.

He studied at the Himelfarb high school in Jerusalem. He served in the IDF as a combat medic in the 7th Brigade and completed his mandatory service in April 2023. He took part in an initiative that used soccer to bring Jewish and Arab children together, and he planned a 2-year trip around the world.

On 7 October 2023 he was at the Nova festival when Hamas attacked. He hid in a field shelter with his friend Aner Shapira, and grenades thrown inside tore off his left arm below the elbow. Witnesses saw militants take him away on a truck.

His family led a media and diplomatic campaign for his release, and his mother spoke at the UN. In April 2024 Hamas released a video of him in captivity. His body was recovered by the IDF from a tunnel in Rafah, and Hamas had killed him and 5 other hostages held with him.