(Aug. 8, 2026 / JNS) The Israeli Embassy in Washington on Saturday commemorated the second Hebrew-calendar yahrzeit of six Israeli hostages murdered by Hamas terrorists in a tunnel beneath Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in August 2024.
The victims were Master Sgt. Ori Danino, Carmel Gat, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Eden Yerushalmi.
In a message posted to social media, the embassy said it was honoring the six by kindling memorial candles together with the traditional Shabbat lights. “May their memories forever be a blessing, and may their light continue to shine,” it wrote.
All six had been taken alive during the Hamas-led attack on Israel’s northwestern Negev on Oct. 7, 2023.
Their bodies were later discovered in a tunnel some 65 feet underground, with gunshot wounds to the head and other parts of the body.
One of the hostages showed signs of being tied up, and they all showed evidence of neglect and not having bathed for a long time.
In addition, there was evidence that they sustained injuries during their kidnapping that were treated over time.
The hostages are believed to have been transported from the northern Gaza Strip to the south, where they were murdered.
Their bodies were recovered by the Israel Defense Forces on Sept. 1, 2024.
