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What we know
- Six hostages taken during Hamas' Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel were found dead in Gaza yesterday, including Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an Israeli American whose parents have been outspoken advocates for bringing Hamas captives home.
- Thousands of people took to the streets in Tel Aviv tonight to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government.
- The leading group of hostage family members expressed outrage at Netanyahu, saying he "abandoned the abductees!" The group has called for a cease-fire so hostages can be released.
- The Israel Defense Forces identified the other hostages as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Master Sgt. Ori Danino.
- The hostages' bodies were found during combat in a tunnel under the city of Rafah and had been fatally shot shortly before soldiers reached them, the IDF said. It had not previously known the location of the hostages.
- The humanitarian pauses to allow for a mass polio vaccination campaign have held so far. The U.N. has called on both sides to respect the temporary halt in fighting.
Hostage deaths 'should not have happened,' wife of hostage Keith Siegel says
Aviva Siegel, 63, who was rescued in a prisoner swap last year, told NBC News that news of the hostages’ deaths made her “just so sad. I was broken up into pieces. I could not stop crying and shaking. ... It just seems the cruelest thing that could happen.”
Her husband, Keith Siegel, 65, an American like Goldberg-Polin, remains in captivity. She spoke about how she had been looking forward to meeting Goldberg-Polin after having spent so much time with his family.
“It should not have happened,” Siegel said of the hostage deaths.
She said she is keeping hope that her husband is strong and will make it out alive, because “if I don’t, I won’t be able to survive.”
His daughter, Elan Tiv, 33, said she wishes her father could see all of the people coming out to demand the hostages be brought home.
“I want to ask the Biden administration to see that Netanyahu is not doing his job. Netanyahu is killing my dad. Netanyahu is killing the hostages,” she said. She asked Biden to “use his good power to be a leader.”
She called on Netanyahu to “let someone else do the most important mission and bring the hostages home and get this war to a finish.”
Tens of thousands vaccinated against polio on first day of campaign
Israel and Hamas agreed to pause fighting in areas of Gaza for at least eight hours daily from today to Tuesday to begin vaccinating 640,000 children against polio.
Children, escorted by family members, crowded a U.N. clinic in the central Gaza city of Deir Al-Balah, according to Palestinian officials. The territory’s Health Ministry said at least 72,611 children were vaccinated the first day.
The campaign comes after the confirmation last month that a baby was partially paralyzed by the Type 2 polio virus, the first such case in the territory in 25 years.
Israeli forces continued to battle Hamas-led militants in several parts of Gaza, with the Israeli military targeting what it said was a Hamas command center in a former school in Gaza City. The Palestinian Civil Emergency Service said 11 people had died, and medics said many others had been wounded.
In Khan Younis, an Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinians and wounded 10 others, according to medics, bringing the day’s total death toll in Gaza to 27.
Funeral held for Almog Sarusi
Funerals were held for some of the hostages today, including 27-year-old Almog Sarusi.
Sarusi's body was wrapped in an Israeli flag.
“You were abandoned on and on, daily, hour after hour, 331 days,” his mother, Nira, said. “You and so many beautiful and pure souls.”
Politicians mourn hostages, express outrage at Hamas and renew calls for an end to the war
Politicians from both sides of the aisle mourned the deaths of the six hostages.
Biden said in a statement that he was “devastated and outraged,” emphasizing that “Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes.” Similarly, Harris said in a statement, “[M]ay Hersh’s memory be a blessing,” invoking a phrase Jews use to mourn the dead.
Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, also called Hamas a “brutal terrorist organization” and wrote on X, “We condemn their continued atrocities against both Americans and Israelis in the strongest possible terms.”
Former President Donald Trump said on X that “we grieve the senseless death of the Israeli Hostages” but placed the blame for the deaths at the feet of Biden and Harris.
Austin, Gallant spoke about hostage recovery
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed condolences to the families of the slain hostages in a phone conversation with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant today.
Austin and Gallant "affirmed that Hamas leaders must be held accountable for their crimes," according to a readout of the call provided by deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh.
They discussed the necessity of reaching a cease-fire deal to ensure the safe release of Hamas' remaining hostages, Singh said.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan met virtually with families of American hostages
National security adviser Jake Sullivan met virtually today with the families of American hostages held in Gaza, the White House said.
Sullivan discussed the news of six hostages' death, including that of Israeli American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
Sullivan told the families that Biden and his administration are committed to bringing the hostages home as soon as possible, discussing what the White House described as a "diplomatic push across the highest levels of U.S. government" to secure a deal to release the remaining hostages.
Sullivan said the next few days will be “critical” in the efforts to rescue the remaining 101 hostages — including seven Americans — safely, according to a readout of the call from the families. He also echoed Biden in saying that the administration will work tirelessly to reach a deal to release them. The families will meet with Sullivan again later this week.
In response, the families insisted that all negotiating parties must unite to urge Netanyahu to close a deal with Hamas and bring the hostages home. While some of the hostages are known to be dead, there is still a chance some are alive, the families said, adding that those who are not need to be laid to rest.
'The war must stop,' French President Macron says
French President Emmanuel Macron wrote that he was in shock at the discovery of the six hostages who were killed in Gaza.
"There must be an immediate ceasefire and the release of all hostages, including our compatriots Ohad Yahalomi and Ofer Kalderon," Macron said. "The war must stop."
‘My heart was broken’: Mourners hold vigil for Hersh Goldberg-Polin in Jerusalem
Israelis gathered for a candlelight vigil for Israeli American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, one of six hostages who was found dead in Gaza. Israeli forces recovered Goldberg-Polin’s body nearly 11 months after Hamas kidnapped him on Oct. 7.
Protests in Israel over death of six hostages spill into streets of Tel Aviv
NBC News’ Matt Bradley reports from the streets of Tel Aviv as thousands continue to protest after six hostages taken during Hamas’ attack on Israel were found dead in Gaza.
Hostage family group says 300,000 attended Tel Aviv protest
The Hostage Family Forum estimated that 300,000 people attended a demonstration in Tel Aviv demanding the Israeli government negotiate a deal to bring the 101 remaining captives in Gaza home.
NBC News was unable to verify that number.
Family members of the hostages, including the brother of German Israeli citizen Ohad Ben Ami, made statements criticizing the government and Prime Minister Netanyahu. He said that he had had hope for a deal until news broke of the six killed hostages and that now he is "broken."
"Let every citizen in Israel know that if they’re kidnapped in their underwear, the prime minister will abandon them to die, without the values we grew up on, without human dignity, without regard for human life," Kobi Ben Ami said.