An elderly Israeli-American with deep ties to New York has become the first confirmed American citizen to have died while being held hostage by Hamas terrorists, it was announced Friday.
Gadi Haggai, 73, was killed by terrorists still believed to be holding his 70-year-old wife, Judi Weinstein, according to the Hostage and Missing Persons Families Forum, which represents the families.
“Gadi was a man full of humor who knew how to make those around him laugh,” the family group told the Times of Israel.
“A musician at heart, a talented flutist, he played in the IDF Orchestra and was involved with music all his life.”
Kibbutz Nir Oz also said Friday that the Israel Defense Forces informed Haggai’s family that he had been killed.
His body is still in Palestinian territory.
Weinstein managed to call one of the kibbutz members for help, saying that he had been shot in the arm and wounded in the face and that Gadi had been shot in the head, according to Haaretz.
She was also able to text her daughter in Singapore, and a paramedic later told the couple’s children that Weinstein had called for medical help, but they lost contact with her.
The couple’s relatives had begun a frantic search for their relatives after the October 7 attack. Haggai Family
“He said terrorists on a motorcycle shot at them and that my father was very seriously injured,” Iris Weinstein Haggain told the Times of Israel.
“The paramedics tried to send him an ambulance. “The ambulance was hit by a rocket.”
The family had not heard from the elderly couple since then.
Judih Weinstein Haggai and her husband, Gadi Haggai, were taking their morning walk near Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7 when they were ambushed by radical Hamas terrorists during the attack on Israel. AP
“We know they were seriously injured. We know [Weinstein] She still had the phone with her so she could call and ask for help and give details. But since then, we lost all contact with them,” the couple’s niece, Ofri Haggai, 47, told The Post last month.
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The phone was found hours later by the Israeli military, raising hopes that the couple may have been among the more than 220 Israelis taken hostage during the brutal attack, rather than those killed, Ofri said.
The quest to find out what happened to her relatives led Ofri, a global human resources manager in Israel, to Orange County, New York, where her aunt was born, to seek help from local politicians.
It is unclear how officials were able to determine that he had died in captivity, as Hamas officials do not comment on death reports.
Judi, 70, is believed to remain captive. AP
Gadi, whose mother was born and raised in Manhattan and whose father is from Detroit, and Judi, originally from upstate Goshen, moved to Israel 30 years ago seeking solace in the Jewish state, until unexpected horror struck. last month.
He leaves four children and seven grandchildren.
According to Israel’s official count, 129 people remain captive in the Gaza Strip.
Of them, 22 have died, the Israeli government says.
The forum said between five and 10 of the hostages have American citizenship. The US Embassy had no immediate comment.
With post cables
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Source: vtt.edu.vn