An American citizen who was taken hostage by Hamas during the 7 October attacks on Israel has died in captivity in Gaza, according to a group representing hostages’ families.
Gadi Haggai, a 73-year-old US and Israeli dual national, was out for a walk with his wife Judith Weinstein Haggai, 70, in the Kibbutz Nir Oz where they lived that morning when Hamas militants stormed across the border into Israel, the Missing Persons Families Forum said.
The couple was reportedly shot at, with Gadi Haggai left critically injured.
Neither of them has been seen or heard from since.
The Israeli military told Haggai’s family members 10 days after the surprise attacks that the couple were among the hundreds of people being held hostage by Hamas militants in Gaza, reported CTV News.
Then, on Friday, the Missing Persons Families Forum confirmed that Gadi Haggai had died.
His body is still being held in Gaza, the statement said.
“Gadi was a man full of humor who knew how to make those around him laugh. A musician at heart, a gifted flautist, he played in the IDF Orchestra and was involved with music his whole life,” the forum said in the statement.
Gadi Haggai, a 73-year-old US and Israeli dual national, and his wife Judith Weinstein Haggai, 70, were both kidnapped on 7 October
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“We share in the profound grief of the Haggai family.”
The details of how or when the 73-year-old died remain unclear but he is believed to be the first confirmed death of an American hostage held by Hamas.
Meanwhile, Ms Haggai is still being held captive in Gaza, the forum said.
The couple’s nephew previously spoke of the family’s heartbreak at not knowing whether they were dead or alive.
Arad Haggai, who is based in the UK, told The Guardian in October about the last communication they had with their loved ones.
He said that the Haggais had gone for a walk at around 6.30am on the morning of 7 October.
They then sent a final text message to their children at around 6.50am, saying that they were under attack from “rocket fire and they have to try to hide somewhere in the fields”.
Around 15 minutes later, Ms Haggai managed to send a message to the kibbutz security saying that they had both been shot by Hamas militants on a motorbike.
While she was wounded, her husband was “hit badly”.
“She tried to ask for help. But the kibbutz was already under heavy fire, and there is only one bullet-proof ambulance, and they couldn’t move it because the terrorists set it on fire,” Arad Haggai said.
Gadi Haggai was a retired chef and musician while Ms Haggai previously worked as an English teacher and puppeteer. They share four adult children.
Around 240 people were believed to have been taken captive when Hamas launched its surprise attacks on 7 October, killing around 1,200 people.
In the almost 11 weeks since, 110 hostages have been released.
On 20 October, an American mother and daughter, Judith and Natalie Raanan, were the first to be released.
Destroyed buildings along the Gaza strip
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Days later, two elderly Israeli women, Nurit Cooper, 79, and Yocheved Lifschitz, 85, were also freed.
Then, last month, major movement began in the release of hostages when the Israeli government reached a landmark deal with Hamas.
As part of a week-long truce – brokered by the US, Qatar and Egypt – hostages were freed in exchange for a temporary pause on Israel’s offensive on Gaza to allow critical humanitarian aid trucks into the war-stricken area.
Most of the hostages released were women and children, many of them from the same kibbutz where the Haggais lived.
Four-year-old American-Israeli girl Abigail Edan was among the final hostages released.
While the little girl was reunited with family members, she was tragically left orphaned after her parents Roy Edan, 43, and Smadar Edan, 40, were among those slaughtered by Hamas.
Prior to the release of some of the hostages, President Joe Biden had been facing mounting pressure to bring American citizens home.
Meanwhile, he is also facing mounting pressure from progressive Democrats over the US’s support for Israel as President Benjamin Netanyahu’s military continues to rain down on Gaza.
More than 20,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s retaliatory strikes on Gaza since the start of the war – amounting to almost 1 per cent of the territory’s pre-war population – according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Emily Foster is a globe-trotting journalist based in the UK. Her articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
