Hundreds Gather in Jerusalem to Mark Hersh Goldberg-Polin's Second Yahrzeit

Hundreds gathered in Jerusalem on Friday, August 7, 2026, to remember Hersh Goldberg-Polin, the Israeli-American hostage taken on October 7, 2023 and executed by Hamas captors in a Gaza tunnel in August 2024 alongside five other hostages (Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Ori Danino — the 'Beautiful Six'), as IDF troops unknowingly approached their location. The ceremony, held at the Baka community center and organized by family and friends, marked the second yahrzeit on the Hebrew calendar. Speakers included his parents Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, his sisters Leebie and Orly, and friends including members of a Hapoel Jerusalem fan-club band formed in his memory. Jon Polin spoke in Hebrew about the need for unity; Rachel Goldberg-Polin, whose advocacy has become emblematic of the hostage families' grief, spoke of being 'stuck in time.' The family's motto, 'May his memory be a revolution,' continues to anchor accountability and hostage-advocacy campaigns nearly three years after October 7.