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USA

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Biden on American Israeli Killed by Hamas

Biden on Death of Hersh Goldberg-Polin: ‘Hamas Leaders Will Pay for These Crimes’

President Joe Biden responded to the news that Hersh Goldberg-Polin was one of the bodies that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had discovered in Gaza, and stated “Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes.”

Biden issued a statement that it was “now confirmed that one of the hostages” killed by Hamas terrorists was Goldberg-Polin. Biden described Goldberg-Polin’s death as “tragic” and “reprehensible.”

“Earlier today, in a tunnel under the city of Rafah, Israeli forces recovered six bodies of hostages held by Hamas,” Biden said in a statement. “We have now confirmed that one of the hostages killed by these vicious Hamas terrorists was an American citizen, Hersh Goldberg-Polin.”

Biden added that he was “devasted and outraged.”

“Hersh was among the innocents brutally attacked while attending a music festival for peace in Israel on October 7,” Biden added. “He lost his arm helping friends and strangers during Hamas’ savage massacre. He had just turned 23. He planned to travel the world. I have gotten to know his parents, Jon and Rachel. They have been courageous, wise, and steadfast, even as they have endured the unimaginable. They have been relentless and irrepressible champions of their son and of all the hostages held in unconscionable conditions. I admire them and grieve with them more deeply than words can express.”

“I know all Americans tonight will have them in their prayers, just as Jill and I will,” Biden continued. “I have worked tirelessly to bring their beloved Hersh safely to them and am heartbroken by the news of his death. It is as tragic as it is reprehensible. Make no mistake. Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes. And we will keep working around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages.”

As Breitbart News previously reported:

Israel’s Army Radio announced Sunday morning local time that Goldberg-Polin had been identified as one of the dead. The immediate cause of death had not been identified. Army Radio also announced that the family of Israeli hostage Orio Danino, 25, who had been abducted after saving people from the music festival, had also been identified as one of the dead. So, too, had Eden Yerushalmi, 24, an Israeli woman who had spoken with her family before being abducted.

Hersh was one of the more than 250 people who were taken hostage after Hamas terrorists launched a land, sea, and air invasion of Israel, leaving 1,200 people murdered.

Goldberg-Polin and other people who had been attending the Supernova festival sought shelter in a roadside rocket shelter. While they were inside, Hamas terrorists were throwing grenades into the shelter, which resulted in the loss of Goldberg-Polin’s left arm from the elbow down.

Rachel Goldberg-Polin and her husband Jon Polin recently spoke at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago and spoke about how it was “not a political issue” to call for the hostages to be released.

Why do I get the impression that Hamas members are not shaking right now?

Supreme Leader of Los Zetas Released from US Prison

Wild Speculation Follows Release of Gulf Cartel Supreme Leader-Los Zetas Founder

Speculation is running wild on both sides of the border following the release from prison of a man once known as the supreme leader of the Gulf Cartel and founder of Los Zetas. Some individuals were expecting him to return to his hometown and reclaim the reigns of his criminal organization. Others claimed he would stay in the U.S. under witness protection. The issue caused widespread speculation and rumors to spread like wildfire.

This week, Osiel Cardenas Guillen, the former top leader of the Gulf Cartel, was released from a U.S. prison, sparking widespread speculation about his future. According to a report from NBC, Cardenas Guillen is in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is facing extradition to Mexico next week, where he has multiple pending criminal charges.

For several months leading up to his release, authorities in Mexico had been hearing rumors about his eventual return to Matamoros and how individuals from the Gulf Cartel were paving the way for him. Other individuals claimed that other leaders within the Gulf Cartel were moving to kill him upon his return to Mexico. Mexican news outlets ran various stories with conflicting versions about the drug lord’s release and potential return to power.

Cardenas became a highly feared figure following his rise to power in the late 1990s when he killed his way to the helm of the Gulf Cartel. Soon after, he consolidated his power by recruiting a group of former soldiers and police officers as his personal guard and hit squad. That group grew in power and became known as Los Zetas.

The U.S. Department of Justice indicted Cardenas on drug trafficking charges in 2000, but it wasn’t until 2003 that Mexican military forces arrested him in Matamoros following a fierce shootout. In 2007, Mexican authorities extradited Cardenas, and he had his initial hearing in Brownsville, where much of the case was kept under seal and out of public view. While Cardenas was facing multiple life sentences if convicted, he pleaded guilty to various charges and, in 2010, received a 25-year prison sentence and was ordered to pay a $50 million fine. While it is believed that he received credit for time served since his extradition, his release this week points to Cardenas having received various sentence reductions due to his cooperation with authorities.

Hotel Workers' Strike

PHOTOS: U.S. Hotel Workers’ Strike over Wages Threatens Labor Day Travel

A reported 10,000 hotel workers in several cities across America are on strike in a push for better wages and a reversal of staffing cuts.

The strike is happening over Labor Day weekend following contract talks with Marriott International, Hilton, and Hyatt, Reuters reported Sunday, citing the Unite Here union.

The outlet continued:

Unite Here, which represents workers in hotels, casinos, and airports across the United States and Canada, said thousands of workers at 25 hotels are on strike in some major travel destinations including San Francisco and San Diego in California, Hawaii’s capital city Honolulu, Boston, Seattle, and Greenwich, Connecticut, with workers from additional cities ready to join the walkout as the Labor Day holiday weekend continues.
The strike is taking place with the industry facing a 9% increase in Labor Day weekend domestic travel compared to last year, according to AAA booking data.
Images show one large group of workers carrying signs that read “Workers Need a Raise” and “Make Them Pay!”:
...
According to Hyatt’s lead of labor relations for the Americas, Michael D’Angelo, its hotels have contingency plans in place to deal with the strikes, the Associated Press (AP) reported Sunday.

He noted that, “We are disappointed that UNITE HERE has chosen to strike while Hyatt remains willing to negotiate.”

There are approximately 1.9 million people working in America’s hotel industry which is about 196,000 fewer than there were in early 2019, per Bureau of Labor Statistics, the AP article noted.

FBI on Fentanyl Trafficking

FBI: Enough Fentanyl to Kill 2.5 Million Americans Seized in South Carolina

Enough fentanyl to kill 2.5 million Americans — as well as several pounds of methamphetamine and cocaine — was seized in a South Carolina drug investigation, the FBI announced Monday.

A multi-agency effort focusing on illegal drug distribution in Richland and Lexington Counties unearthed five kilograms (around 11 pounds) of fentanyl, 500 grams (1.1 pounds) of methamphetamine, and 800 grams (1.7 pounds) of cocaine, Special Agent in Charge Steve Jensen with FBI Columbia said:

While he did not name or specify the number of arrests, Jensen said the investigation spanned multiple years and that the fentanyl had the potential to kill 2.5 million people.

“Our work doesn’t end here. We will continue to investigate and hold offenders who are poisoning our communities with illegal drugs accountable,” the agent said in the video statement.

“We will not waver in our commitment to protect citizens of the United States.”

California Against Voter ID's

California Assembly Passes Bill Banning Local Voter ID Requirements

The California Assembly passed a bill that would ban voter identification requirements from being enacted at local government levels.

Senate Bill 1174, which passed in a 57-16 vote, would “prohibit a local government from enacting or enforcing any charter provision, ordinance, or regulation requiring a person to present identification for the purpose of voting or submitting a ballot at any polling place, voter center, or other location where ballots are cast or submitted, as specified.”

The bill was introduced by California State Sen. David Min (D) and co-sponsored by California state Sen. Josh Newman (D).

“We cannot have 100 different charter cities making up 100 different sets of voting rules, based on fringe conspiracy theories,” Min said in a statement, according to the Daily Pilot. “I have repeatedly told the Huntington Beach City Council members pushing this issue that if they were to produce any evidence of widespread voter fraud, I would lead efforts to change California’s voter eligibility rules. They have not produced any such evidence.”

California Assemblyman Bill Essayli ® reportedly attempted to include an amendment into the legislation that would have prevented illegal migrants from being able to vote in elections, according to the Center Square.

The bill’s passage comes after voters in Huntington Beach voted 53.4 percent in support of a ballot initiative that would require residents to show identification in order to vote in elections starting in 2026, according to Democracy Docket.

In April, California filed a lawsuit against Huntington Beach, and California Attorney General Rob Bonta noted that requiring people to show identification in order to vote was “blatantly and flatly illegal,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

“They have greatly overstated the authority they think they have,” Bonta said in a statement at the time. “They have willfully violated the law, they have brazenly violated the law…. They know exactly what they are doing, and they are doing it anyway.”

Pelosi on Homes for Immigrants

Pelosi on CA Using Tax Dollars to Help Illegals Buy Homes: Have to Make Home Ownership ‘Available to All’

On Friday’s broadcast of HBO’s “Real Time,” House Speaker Emerita Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said that while she’s not familiar with the details of California’s legislation to allow illegal immigrants to get taxpayer assistance for buying homes, “making the American Dream of home ownership available to all people is something we have to do for people who are here now” and she wants to move illegal immigrants “to documented.” But ultimately, the issue is up to the states.

Host Bill Maher asked, “The California lawmakers just passed a law — it hasn’t been signed by Gov. Newsom (D) — but giving government assistance to undocumented immigrants to buy houses. That’s kind of a different place than the Democratic Party used to be on immigration, is it not? I’m not going to say that’s what the country’s going to do, but that’s certainly where California is.”

Pelosi responded, “Well, let me just say, immigration had always been a bipartisan issue.”

Maher cut in to say, “But not free housing.”

Pelosi responded, “Well, it’s not free housing, it’s the American Dream being available to more people.” After talking about past immigration statements from Republicans, Pelosi said, “California’s always in the lead, maybe others will follow that lead, but that’s up to those states. But we’re very blessed here with beautiful diversity of our –.”

Maher then cut in to follow up, “So, you’d vote for this law?”

Pelosi answered, “I’m not familiar with exactly what that is, but making the American Dream of home ownership available to all people is something we have to do for people who are here now –.”

Maher cut in to say “This is for the undocumented.”

Pelosi answered, “Well, what I would like to do is move them to documented.”

Pelosi kept speaking, but got drowned out by applause from the audience. Once it died down, she stated, “One of the best things that we can do for our economy is to pass comprehensive immigration reform, so that all of these people are participating more fully in our economy, contributing to it, contributing to Social Security, contributing in every way to it. So, the attitude that we have in California of openness is something we share, whether that translates into particular policy one place or another is up to that region.”

Imam Wants Israeli Professor to Get Killed

Imam Tells Followers to ‘Take Out’ Israeli Professor at Columbia

An imam in upstate New York reportedly told supporters to “take out” Columbia University assistant professor Shai Davidai, who has led counter-demonstrators against pro-Palestinian protests, riots, and encampments.

The New York Post reported Saturday:

Vassar-educated, Utica-based imam Tom Facchine made the plea about business school professor Shai Davidai during an Aug. 20 webinar called “Islamic Political Activism” with various Columbia student groups which promoted and broadcast it.

“That Shai Davidai guy: How do we get him in trouble? How do we create a situation in which he’s in jeopardy?” Facchine, 35, asked. “If you’re able to take out somebody like that and make an example, that might shut up a hundred more.”

The Jersey-born Facchine left Christianity to become atheist, found Marx in college and converted to Islam in 2010.

Columbia has reportedly decided not to take further actions to protect Davidai.
As Breitbart News reported earlier this year, Davidai was barred from campus, ostensibly for his own safety, after administrators allowed a pro-Palestinian encampment to become entrenched. The encampment ultimately ended with activists violently occupying a university building before being removed by police — though many charges were later dropped.

Columbia president Minouche Shafik resigned last month, after her perceived mismanagement of the crisis, which threatens to resume this fall.

Rapper Fatman Scoop Passed Away

Rapper Fatman Scoop Dead at 53 After Collapsing at Concert

Rapper Fatman Scoop, whose real name was Isaac Freeman, died at 53 after collapsing at a concert in Hamden, Connecticut, on Friday.

Video footage that TMZ obtained of the incident, which took place at Town Center Park, shows Fatman Scoop saying, “If you came to party, make some noise” before collapsing onstage. The music then stops, and the crowd falls silent.

Multiple people then rush to the stage to administer CPR to Fatman Scoop. While this transpired, a man onstage appeared to try to distract the crowd by attempting to keep the show going.

“I just wanna say this, Hamden, where y’all at, make some noise for me,” the man said, which failed to elicit an enthusiastic reaction from the crowd.

“How y’all feeling out there?” the individual added as people behind him performed chest compressions on the “Be Faithful” rapper.

A concertgoer then shouted, “We wanna know what happened to Fatman Scoop!”

“They doing CPR? Oh my God,” another concertgoer proclaimed.

Shortly after that, the “All Night Long” rapper was seen being rushed to a local hospital in a stretcher while an emotionally distraught woman declared, “Lord, touch him. Please, Father God! Touch him, Lord, please, Lord. Please, touch him, Father God. Oh my God!”

Authorities told TMZ they were dispatched for a medical emergency at 8:33 p.m.

This was followed up with multiple reports that the rapper had died.

“Fatman Scoop has died after suffering a medical emergency at a show in Connecticut, according to his tour manager,” the radio station KBXX 97.9 The Box revealed in a Facebook post.

The radio station added that Fatman Scoop “was rushed to the hospital after collapsing during a performance. The incident occurred at The Green and Gold Party summer concert at Town Center Park in Hamden, Connecticut.”

“CPR was administered on-site during the medical emergency before he was taken to the hospital,” KBXX 97.9 The Box added. “Hamden Mayor Lauren Garrett has asked the public to ‘please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.'”

Fatman Scoop has died after suffering a medical emergency at a show in Connecticut, according to his tour manager.On…

Posted by KBXX 97.9 The Box on Saturday, August 31, 2024

EUROPE

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Stabbing in Siegen, Germany

Woman Arrested as Six Injured in German Bus Knife Attack

Police arrested a 32-year-old woman after six people were hurt in a knife attack on a bus headed to a festival in western Germany. Authorities said Saturday that there was no evidence of a political or religious motive.

Three of those attacked are in life-threatening condition, police said on Friday evening.

The knife attack took place in Siegen, east of Cologne. The bus was on its way to a local festival in the town and at least another 40 people were on board when the attack took place at about 7:40 p.m.

Police and prosecutors said the six people wounded were aged between 16 and 30 and all were from the region. By Saturday morning, three of them had left the hospital after outpatient treatment.

Local authorities planned to go ahead with the festival.

The stabbing in Siegen happened a week after a knife attack in Solingen, a city in the same state of North Rhine-Westphalia, in which a suspected Islamic extremist from Syria who had avoided being deported is accused of killing three people and wounding another eight.

The Solingen attack prompted the governing coalition to draw up plans to tighten knife laws and make deportations easier.

Police said the woman arrested in Siegen was a German citizen with no immigrant roots.

UK: Stabbing Victims Died

Two People Injured During Notting Hill Carnival Have Died, Police Say

Two people who were critically injured in attacks while attending London’s Notting Hill Carnival earlier this week have died, police said Saturday.

The Metropolitan Police force said 32-year-old Cher Maximen died early Saturday after being stabbed in the street on Aug. 25. She had been visiting the carnival, billed as Europe’s biggest street party, with her child, who was not hurt.

A 20-year-old local man was arrested and charged with attempted murder, and is now likely to face a murder charge.

Police also announced the death of Mussie Imnetu, 41, who was found unconscious in a west London street with a head injury on Monday night. The chef had been visiting Britain from his home in Dubai.

A 31-year-old London man has been charged with causing grievous bodily harm, and police said the charge would be reviewed after Imnetu’s death.

More than 1 million people each year attend the carnival, a two-day celebration of Afro-Caribbean culture that takes place on the streets of the Notting Hill neighborhood in west London.

UK: No More Anglo-Saxons?

Whitewash: UK University Removes ‘Anglo-Saxon’ From Curriculum

In a Black Lives Matter-inspired move, a British university has cancelled the term “Anglo-Saxon” from its curriculum.

The University of Nottingham has removed “Algo-Saxon” from courses on history and literature to push back against “nationalist narratives”.

According to The Telegraph, a masters-level course, Viking and Anglo-Saxon Studies, has been renamed as Viking and Early Medieval English Studies.

Another module, a literature course originally named “A Tale of Seven Kingdoms: Anglo-Saxon and Viking-Age England from Bede to Alfred the Great” has been recast as “Early Mediaeval England from Bede to Alfred the Great”.

While the thrust of the “decolonise the curriculum” agenda — which the university pledged to do amid the Black Lives Matter movement — has typically focussed on attacking British history and identity, the university reportedly said that it will seek to “problematize the term ‘Viking’” as well.

Nottingham academics have also been seeking to dismantle “essentialist ideas” about nationality, namely the very concept of a distinct English identity which has unique and fundamental characteristics.

The school is not alone in attacking the history of the Anglo-Saxons, with the University of Cambridge now teaching students that Anglo-Saxons never actually existed as a distinct ethnic group.

The move, ironically made by Cambridge’s leading Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic (ASNC) studies, was reportedly done in order to promote “anti-racist” ideology.

“One concern has been to address recent concerns over use of the term ‘Anglo-Saxon’ and its perceived connection to ethnic/racial English identity,” the department is reported as saying.

Meanwhile, earlier this year, Cambridge University Press academic publication, the Anglo-Saxon England Journal, said that it would be removing Anglo-Saxon from its name to better represent the “international, interdisciplinary and rapidly evolving nature of research in this field”.

UK: The Costs of Favoring Immigration

Record 1.6 Million Out of Work Migrants Costing the Taxpayer £8.5 Billion Per Year: Report

The British taxpayer is footing the bill for a record number of out-of-work migrants, who are reportedly costing the government up to £8.5 billion per year.

A record 1,689,000 foreigners are currently unemployed or otherwise “economically inactive” in the UK, according to analysis of government figures by the Centre for Immigration Control. The think tank noted that the current level is the highest in British history, surpassing the previous high in 2012 of 1,628,000.

Centre for Migration Control researchers calculated that support for unemployed immigrants could cost the taxpayer as much as £8.5 million per year. However, this estimate did not include the costs of asylum seekers and foreign students to the state, meaning the total financial drain of mass migration policies is likely much higher.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Robert Bates, Centre for Migration Control research director, said: “For all the talk of a fiscal ‘black hole’, the Labour Government seem to be missing the glaringly obvious fact that mass migration is causing economic pandemonium.

“There is no reason for us to continue handing out so many long-term visas when we are currently having to bail out over a million migrants who are already in Britain but not working. This is the very definition of a Ponzi scheme, and we will only compound the problem if we do not change course soon.’

“Our elderly are facing a potentially deadly winter as Keir Starmer cancels the lifeline of the winter fuel allowance, but at the same time he is doing nothing to clamp down on workless migrants.”

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage added: “The economic arguments for mass migration are over.”

Germany: Anti-Mass Migration Policies Favored by People

Anti-Mass Migration Parties Make Big Gains in German State Elections

Populist anti-mass migration parties made significant gains in state elections in Germany on Sunday, with the right-wing Alternative for Germany projected to have secured a resounding victory in Thuringia.

Exit polls for the east German state of Thuringia have put the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) out on top, with a projected 30.5 per cent of the vote, beating out the neo-liberal centrist Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party formerly led by Chancellor Angela Merkel at 24.5 per cent.

Should the exit polls prove true, it would mark the first time that the AfD was the winner in a state election in Germany.

Separately, in the state of Saxony, the AfD is in a tight race for the top with the CDU, with exit polls projecting the centrist party to have won 31.5 per cent of the vote, compared to 30 per cent for the AfD, broadcaster DW reports.

However, given the slim divide between the two parties, it is still possible that the populist party may yet squeak out a victory in Saxony as well.

Hailing the success of her party, AfD co-leader Alice Weidel said that her party should be involved in the state governments, pushing back against reported plans by other parties to band together to block the populists from entering government.

“Under normal circumstances, in order to stick to the customs in this country, the strongest party is exploring, and that is the AfD,” Weidel said referring to Thuringia. “The voters want the AfD to be involved in a government. We have 30 per cent of the voters in both federal states, and without us, a stable government is no longer possible.”

Norwegian Princess Marries... a Shaman?

A Norwegian princess marries an American self-styled shaman in front of a star-studded audience

Social media influencers, reality stars and TV personalities were among the guests as the Norwegian king’s eldest child, Princess Märtha Louise, married an American self-professed shaman in a wedding ceremony at the culmination of three days of festivities

A Norwegian princess marries an American self-styled shaman in front of a star-studded audienceBy JARI TANNERAssociated PressThe Associated PressHELSINKI

HELSINKI (AP) — Social media influencers, reality stars and TV personalities were among the guests as the Norwegian king’s eldest child, Princess Märtha Louise, married an American self-professed shaman on Saturday in a wedding ceremony following three days of festivities.

The 52-year-old Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett, who claims to be a sixth-generation shaman from California, tied the knot in the picturesque small town of Geiranger, one of Norway’s major tourist attractions located on a fjord with stunning views.

Following festivities that started on Thursday, the actual wedding ceremony took place in a large white tent set up on a lush lawn. Guests told media outlets that Norwegian and U.S. artists performed at the event along with a gospel choir and a singer representing Norway’s indigenous Sámi people.

“It was fantastic! It was Hollywood meets Geiranger,” Norwegian TV personality Harald Rønneberg described the colorful ceremony to public broadcaster NRK. “It was gospel and love. We laughed, we clapped, and we were touched. It was absolutely beautiful.”

The couple has sold the wedding photo rights to British celebrity magazine Hello! and the film rights to Netflix. The deals prompted protests from Norwegian media, which say the arrangement goes against local practices. The couple have often lashed out against the press while promoting themselves on social media.

The 87-year-old King Harald, who has been in fragile health the past few years, attended his daughter’s wedding together with Queen Sonja and other member of the Norwegian royal house. Crown Princess Victoria and her husband Prince Daniel represented the Swedish royal house together with her brother, Prince Carl Philip, and his wife Princess Sofia. No other European royals attended the wedding.

The wedding comes amid widespread criticism of the couple’s actions and waning support for the Norwegian royals, who have also been plagued by negative reports about an unruly family member who faces preliminary domestic violence charges.

Märtha Louise and Verrett, 49, have attracted headlines with their alternative beliefs. She is fourth in line to the Norwegian throne but said in 2022 that she’ll no longer officially represent the Norwegian royal house.

The princess — she has retained the title — has said she can talk with angels, while Verrett claims that he communicates with a broad range of spirits and has a medallion which helps ward off spells and cure diseases.

They became engaged in 2022. Following their marriage, Verrett will not have a royal title or official duties.

MIDDLE EAST

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Hamas Killed 6 Hostages Before IDF Could Rescue Them

Hamas Shot 6 Hostages in Head in Last 48 Hours to Prevent IDF Rescue

The six Israeli hostages whose bodies were found in a Hamas tunnel underneath Gaza Saturday had been shot in the head in the last 48 hours, according to autopsy reports Sunday.

As Breitbart News reported, the Israeli military identified the hostages Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Master Sergeant Ori Danino

Hamas murdered the hostages in the belief that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers were closing in. According to IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the soldiers did not know the hostages’ exact location but had rescued one hostage nearby last week and were fighting above ground at the location.

“According to our initial assessment, they were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them,” Hagari said Sunday morning.

Ynetnews.com reported:

All six hostages whose bodies were discovered and recovered from Gaza on Sunday were found with gunshot wounds to their head and other areas, their autopsies showed.
According to the post-mortem, they were executed no more than 48 hours before being found and signs of neglect in captivity were found on their bodies.
Except for one of the hostages, who showed signs of being bound, no evidence of torture was found. However, the condition of their bodies indicated systematic neglect, including a lack of hygiene over a long period. Additionally, indications were present of previous injuries sustained during their abduction, which had been treated over time.

Israel’s Army Radio noted that this is not the first time during the war that Palestinian terrorists have murdered Israeli hostages to prevent their rescue. Notably, in the infamous 1972 Munich Olympics massacre, terrorists murdered Israeli athletes they had taken hostage as West German police attempted a rescue.

Separately, on Sunday, three Israeli police officers were murdered near a checkpoint in the West Bank region of Judea in a drive-by shooting by a Palestinian terrorist.

American Israeli Found Dead in Gaza

American-Israeli Hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin Found Dead in Gaza, Murdered by Hamas

Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, the American-Israeli hostage who lost his left hand when being abducted by Hamas from the Nova music festival on October 7, has been found dead in Gaza by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers.

Goldberg-Polin was identified after news broke Saturday that the IDF had discovered a number of unidentified bodies in Gaza. Amid rumors spreading throughout Israel on social media, the IDF asked the public to wait before it had identified the bodies.

In a statement, the IDF said:

The IDF located a number of bodies during combat in the Gaza Strip. At this time, the troops are still operating in the area and are carrying out a process to extract and identify the bodies that will last several hours. We ask to refrain from spreading rumors.

Israel’s Army Radio announced Sunday morning local time that Goldberg-Polin had been identified as one of the dead. The immediate cause of death had not been identified.

Army Radio also announced that the family of Israeli hostage Ori Danino, 25, who had been abducted after saving people from the music festival, had also been identified as one of the dead. So, too, had Eden Yerushalmi, 24, an Israeli woman who had spoken with her family before being abducted from the festival.

Six bodies were found; the other three have not yet been identified as of the time of publication of this article.

Update: In a statement, the IDF and the Israel Security Agency (ISA) declared:

Yesterday (Saturday), the IDF and ISA located and recovered the bodies of the hostages Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Master Sergeant Ori Danino, from an underground tunnel in the Rafah area in the Gaza Strip and returned them to Israeli territory.

They were all taken hostage on October 7th and were murdered by the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip.

Following an identification procedure carried out by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, the Israel Police, and the IDF Military Rabbinate, the IDF Manpower Directorate’s Hostage team, which is responsible for accompanying the families of the hostages, notified their families. The IDF and ISA send their heartfelt condolences to the families.

The IDF and Israeli security forces are operating with all means to bring home all the hostages as fast as possible.

The voices of Army Radio announcers were heavy and near tears, despite the near-routine nature of military news.

“Our hearts are broken,” the Goldberg-Polin family said, thanking the public for their support and asking for privacy.