Anguish, frustration follow slaying of 6 hostages in Gaza

American leaders expressed their frustration and anger Sunday morning after Hamas murdered six Israeli hostages, including Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.

“I am just absolutely heartbroken for Hersh’s family, for the families of these other hostages that were butchered by these Hamas terrorists,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif) said on CNN’s “State of the Union,” noting Goldberg-Polin was from California. “I hope and pray, I think as we all do, that there’s a negotiated end to this war, and soon, and that not another innocent person loses their life.”

On Sunday, Israel reported the body of Goldberg-Polin, 23, was recovered alongside five other hostages: Ori Danino, Eden Yerushalmi, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Carmel Gat. IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said in an interview with CNN’s Dana Bash on Sunday morning that the hostages were killed shortly before their bodies were found in an underground tunnel in Rafah.

“This is a very sad morning in Israel, very sad news coming out of the Gaza Strip announcing today after we were able to talk to the families and inform them about finding the bodies of their loved ones,” Shoshani said Sunday morning. “We examined them and we found that they were murdered by Hamas recently. We were able to inform the families about it and share the news today, the very, very sad news about them.”

The reports about the death of the hostages served as a stark reminder of the human cost of the ongoing war in Gaza that began with Hamas’ attacks last Oct. 7 on Israeli territory. The news was also another setback in the quest for peace and made clear there’s no immediate end in sight to the conflict.

Goldberg-Polin, who was captured during a music festival in Israel, became one of the most well-known American faces of the hostages. His parents, Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, spoke at the Democratic National Convention, urging for a ceasefire deal and release of the hostages less than two weeks ago.

Vice President Kamala Harris offered her condolences and support to Hersh’s families in a statement early Sunday morning. She later spoke to Hersh’s parents later in the day, alongside her husband, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, she said in a post on X.

“Hamas is an evil terrorist organization. With these murders, Hamas has even more American blood on its hands,” Harris said in a statement Sunday morning. “I strongly condemn Hamas’ continued brutality, and so must the entire world.”

And President Joe Biden said he was “devastated and outraged” and called Goldberg-Polin’s death “tragic and reprehensible.” “Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes. And we’ll continue working towards a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages,” Biden said in a statement.

Republicans criticized Biden and Harris for their handling of the hostage crisis. Former President Donald Trump reiterated his belief on Truth Social that the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel would have never happened under a Trump administration: “The Hostage Crisis in Israel is only taking place because Comrade Kamala Harris is weak and ineffective, and has no idea what she’s doing,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

“What are they going to pay? I mean, what’s the price?” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on ABC’s “This Week” in response to Biden saying Hamas will pay. “They destroyed a lot of Gaza. They put their own people in harm’s way. Hamas could care less about the Palestinian people.”

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said that Biden and Harris need to put more pressure on Hamas and Iran: “I would urge him to finish the job against Hamas, which is exactly what Kamala Harris and Joe Biden should’ve done from the very beginning,” he said in an interview with Kristen Welker on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Mass protests in Israel had already been putting pressure on Netanyahu to bring the hostages home, but news of the death of the six ratcheted up their size and intensity, with the Jerusalem Post reporting that 300,000 gathered Sunday in Tel Aviv.

Ronen and Orna Neutra, parents of Israeli-American hostage Omer Neutra who is still being held, recently spoke at the Republican National Convention about freeing the hostage. They called on the administration to do everything possible to free their son and the remaining hostages on Sunday morning after the news of Goldberg-Polin’s murder.

“We are calling on President Biden and vice president Harris to do everything in our power to reach a deal and bring the hostages back,” Ronen Neutra said in an interview with Bash on “State of the Union.” “We were warning about that kind of situation.”

Schiff, a Democrat running for Senate in California, defended the Biden administration saying that they are doing everything he can. But he also acknowledged the limitations of the American government.

“We’re not putting boots on the ground in these tunnels under Gaza, so it is a very difficult situation in terms of our own ability to rescue these hostages,” Schiff said in an interview with Bash. “But I really sincerely believe the administration is doing everything possible.”

Jonathan Dekel-Chen, the father of one Israeli-American hostage still held captive, reaffirmed the building internal pressure and criticism on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a deal. Mass protests in Israel had already been putting pressure on Netanyahu to bring the hostages home, but news of the death of the six ratcheted up their size and intensity, with the Jerusalem Post reporting that 300,000 gathered Sunday in Tel Aviv.

“Israelis at large, and myself included, have been extremely critical of the Israeli government for not negotiating in good faith now, for many, many months,” Dekel-Chen said in an interview with Nancy Cordes on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday, adding that only Netanyahu and Hamas’ Yahya Sinwar (“with the blood of thousands on his hands”) have the power to end the carnage.

Dekel-Chen added, “There is no explanation, a reasonable explanation why our government is refusing to deeply engage in these negotiations and complete them, when our entire senior military establishment and intelligence community has been saying publicly and openly for weeks and months that the time has come to end the fighting in Gaza get our hostages home, as many alive as possible.”

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), in an interview with Welker, also noted the increased pressure on Netanyahu to reach an agreement, including from hostage families.

“What we need now is an end to the war,” Khanna said. “And we need to continue to pressure Hamas to unconditionally release the hostages, but the hostage families themselves are saying that Netanyahu needs to actually be in the negotiation.”

Khanna added that Netanyahu’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has also criticized the prime minister for not withdrawing troops from the Philadelphi Corridor along the border between Gaza and Egypt, as requested by Egypt and the United States deal. “I hope there’s going to be pressure on Hamas and Netanyahu to end this war, release the hostages,” he said.

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