What to Know About the Six Hostages Killed in Gaza
Tributes were pouring in on Sunday for the six hostages who were found dead in southern Gaza over the weekend.
The hostages, whose bodies were retrieved from a tunnel, ranged in age from 23 to 40. Five had been at a dance music festival in southern Israel when they were taken captive during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas and its allies; a sixth was taken from the village of Be’eri.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, a group of their relatives, identified the dead as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Ori Danino.
They were among the roughly 100 hostages remaining in Gaza, both dead and alive. Here is what we know about them.
Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23
Mr. Goldberg-Polin was a dual Israeli American citizen who was taken hostage from the festival in southern Israel on Oct. 7. His mother, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, had traveled the world since, advocating the release of the hostages.
“Hersh is a happy-go-lucky, laid-back, good-humored, respectful and curious person,” she said last month when she spoke at the Democratic National Convention with her husband, Jon. “He is a civilian. He loves soccer, is wild about music and music festivals, and he has been obsessed with geography and travel since he was a little boy.”
Mr. Goldberg-Polin was born in Berkeley, Calif. His family moved to Israel when he was in elementary school. Grievously injured during the attack, Mr. Goldberg-Polin lost part of his left arm and was last seen in a video released by Hamas in April.
President Biden was among those who expressed condolences to Mr. Goldberg-Polin’s family. “I am devastated and outraged,” Mr. Biden said in a statement, adding, “He planned to travel the world.”
Carmel Gat, 40
Ms. Gat lived in Tel Aviv but was staying at her parents’ house in Be’eri, a kibbutz near the Gaza border, when she was taken hostage on Oct. 7. Her mother, Kinneret Gat, was killed in the attacks.
“Carmel was an occupational therapist, full of compassion and love, always finding ways to support and help others,” the forum wrote in a post on X. “She loved solo travel, meeting new people, live rock music concerts, and was particularly fond of Radiohead.”
Haaretz published a profile of Ms. Gat in January that said her closest friends had been holding a weekly yoga class in her honor in Tel Aviv in what has become known as “Hostage Square.” They also created a Spotify playlist of her favorite songs, Haaretz reported, calling it “a humorous, eclectic mix.”
On Sunday, her cousin, Gil Dickmann, posted a photograph on X of a young Ms. Gat, wearing a pink shirt and holding a young baby, grinning at the camera. “Sorry Carmeli,” he wrote, adding, “If only you saw how your friends fought to get you back alive.”
Alexander Lobanov, 32
Mr. Lobanov, who went by Alex, was the father of two children and lived in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, according to the forum.
It said he was working as a bar manager at the festival when the attack began and that witnesses said Mr. Lobanov helped evacuate people.
Mr. Lobanov leaves behind a wife, a 2-year-old child and a 5-month-old baby who was born while he was in captivity, the forum said.
He also held Russian citizenship, according to the Russian state news agency Tass.
Ori Danino, 25
Ori Danino, who was the oldest of five children, had escaped the music festival but gone back to help other people when he was captured, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum wrote on X.
“He was a fighter,” his partner, Liel, said on Israeli radio after learning of his death, The Jerusalem Post reported Sunday. She called him a “hero” who “excelled in everything he did.”
Almog Sarusi, 27
The forum said that Mr. Sarusi was from Ra’anana, a city north of Tel Aviv. It described him as “a vibrant, positive person who loved traveling around Israel in his white jeep with his guitar.”
He was attending the music festival with his girlfriend of five years, the forum wrote in a post on X. Mr. Sarusi’s girlfriend, Shahar, was killed in the attack.
Eden Yerushalmi, 24
Ms. Yerushalmi was “a vibrant young woman with many friends and hobbies,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum wrote on X. “Eden loved spending summer days at the beach playing paddleball, attending parties, and was studying to become a Pilates instructor.”
In November, Ms. Yerushalmi’s sisters lit candles for her in New York City at the gravesite of a major spiritual leader in Judaism. They giggled at the time, trying to explain her nickname — “Opossum” — an old inside joke the sisters could no longer recall. Relatives of Ms. Yerushalmi had also traveled to Paris and Washington to press for the release of the hostages.
Aaron Boxerman, Gabby Sobelman and Myra Noveck contributed research.