The parents of one of the Americans still being held hostage by Hamas spoke during the third night of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) about how it is “not a political issue” to call for the hostages to be released.
Rachel Goldberg-Polin and her husband, Jon Polin, spoke about how 109 people were still being held hostage by Hamas, including their son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, and how wanting the hostages “home is not a political issue.”
The Goldberg-Polins’ speech comes as anti-Israel protesters have gathered outside of the convention in protest of the Biden-Harris administration’s response to the Israel-Hamas war.
“This is a political convention,” Jon Polin said during the couple’s speech at the convention. “But, needing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue.”
The DNC crowd chanted “Bring them home” as Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an American-Israeli taken hostage on Oct. 7, took the stage in Chicago. https://t.co/2r4Nmz4vqa pic.twitter.com/upKD75L47z
— ABC News (@ABC) August 22, 2024
Hersh was last seen by his parents on October 6, 2023, the night before Hamas terrorists launched an attack on Israel. Around 11:00 p.m. that evening, Hersh and a friend left to go camping, according to the Times of Israel.
On the morning of October 7, 2023, Hersh’s mom received two texts from him telling his parents that he loved them. Another text said, “I’m sorry.”
“On October 7th, Hersh and his best friend, Aner went to a music festival in the south of Israel. It was advertised as celebrating, peace, love, and unity,” Rachel Goldberg-Polin explained during the convention. “They also went to celebrate Hersh’s 23rd birthday.”
The Goldberg-Polins ended up discovering that their son and his friend, Aner Shapira, had gone to the Supernova festival, where 364 people were left brutally murdered.
Hersh and Shapira, along with “27 other young festivalgoers took refuge” in a roadside rocket shelter. As they were inside the shelter, Hamas terrorists began throwing grenades inside, which resulted in Hersh’s losing his left arm from the elbow down. Hersh ended up tying a tourniquet around his arm.
Hamas terrorists later informed the people in the shelter to come with them, and Hersh was loaded into the back of a pickup truck with other people.
“Since then, we live on another parent,” Rachel Goldberg-Polin added. ” Anyone who is a parent, or has had a parent, can try to imagine the anguish and misery that Jon and I, and all the hostage families, are enduring.”