Editor's note: Warning: This story contains gory images.
CNN
—
Hamas on Wednesday released a video of Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg Pollin, the first evidence that he survived despite severe injuries during his October 7 capture. became.
Goldberg-Polin, 23 at the time, was abducted from the Nova Music Festival during a Hamas attack on Israel that killed more than 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages.
An undated video shows him with part of his left arm missing several inches above his hand.
A video taken on October 7 showed Goldberg-Polin with a serious injury to her arm. According to first-hand accounts from a young woman who was in the bunker with him during the Hamas attack, he helped throw a grenade before his arm was blown off below the elbow.
The latest video shows Goldberg-Pollin sitting in a chair and talking to the camera. He introduces himself, gives his date of birth and the names of his parents, occasionally gesturing to his injured arm.
“I've been here for almost 200 days,” he said, suggesting the video was shot just before Tuesday, the 200th day since the start of the war.
Goldberg Pollin's hair is cropped short in the video, and numerous cuts are edited from wide shots to close-ups.
Like other Israeli hostages who have appeared in Hamas propaganda videos, he has criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Israeli government. He has been detained in Gaza for six months and is almost certainly speaking out under duress.
He noted that Israeli government ministers are sitting with their families for a holiday dinner, which apparently begins Monday night and is traditionally celebrated with a family dinner. It seems to be referring to the Koshi Festival.
He encouraged his family to stay strong for him and concluded by saying he hoped he could give them some comfort during the holidays.
Goldberg Pollin is one of the most famous of the 129 hostages remaining in Gaza. Banners and murals reading “Bring Hersh Home” have been hung in Jerusalem, and his parents, Rachel and Jonathan, meet regularly with senior U.S. government officials in Washington to investigate the hostage crisis.
Of the 129 hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip on October 7, the Israeli government believes 33 have died.
The Hostage and Missing Persons Families Forum said Ms. Goldberg-Pollin's “harrowing video urgently calls for swift and decisive action to resolve this horrific humanitarian crisis and ensure the safe return of loved ones.” I'm calling,” he said.
“Hersh's cry is the collective cry of all the hostages – their time is quickly running out. With each passing day, the fear grows that more innocent lives will be lost. ” the group said in a statement.
“All hostages must be returned home, including those alive to begin the rehabilitation process and those killed for a dignified burial.”
Hirsch's mother, Rachel Goldberg Pollin, has been campaigning for her son's release for the past six months. She told CNN in January that she wears a tape on her body that marks each day of Hersh's progress since he was kidnapped by Hamas fighters.
Hirsch, 23, was about to embark on a planned trip around the world. On December 27, the day he was scheduled to depart, his mother went to the airport with his friends, handed out Hirsch stickers to passengers on the plane, and asked them to send photos of the places they had visited.
This story has been updated with further developments.
