Newsmakers

Hamas Hostage's Mom Won't Back Down: 'We Will Not Stop'

Rachel Goldberg is on a non-stop mission to bring her son home from captivity, spending the past seven months in a valiant, heart-wrenching, and inspiring quest to rescue him from the grips of terror. Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, was captured by Hamas Oct. 7, while attending the Nova music festival. And since that day, his mother has fiercely fought for his safe return, with her courageous advocacy landing her a place on Time's "100 Most Influential People of 2024" list. Most recently, Goldberg has spoken out about Hamas' decision to release an April 24 video of her son — footage that shows him alive at the time of its recording. The video was the first visible sign since the Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel that Hersh was still alive. "It was a very surreal experience," Goldberg-Polin told CBN News of the clip. "After 201 days, to suddenly hear Hersh's voice was just unbelievable, indescribable, and to see him moving." However, she also described the difficulty in seeing the obvious health impact of Hersh's capture and captivity. Seeing her vibrant son before Oct. 7 juxtaposed against the video was tough. "It was very hard to see he's clearly in a very fragile medical and compromised medical state," she said. "It was the first time that we're seeing him with the stump of what used to be his left forearm and hand." Despite Hersh losing his arm, having signs of bruising, and being without proper medical treatment for months, Goldberg-Polin said she was elated to have "proof of life" and to be able to celebrate that fact. "We were extremely grateful, even though it was hard," she said. When Goldberg-Polin was asked what has kept her so vocal and persistent in recent months, as she's commanded audiences with politicians, religious leaders, and others, she said it's really a "reflexive" response on the part of any parent in her position. "A lot of it is, I think, simply the natural response that a mother or a father has when their child is in danger," she said. Goldberg-Polin also credited prayer as a centering act and something she does "throughout the day" in addition to reciting Psalms. "That is of great comfort to us," she said, expressing gratitude to the people all over the world who have reached out to pray. Our Christian friends and neighbors have been above and beyond exemplary in terms of their outpouring of love, support, and prayer for Hersh and the other hostages." Amid all of the noise and debate surrounding Israel, Gaza, and the war that followed Hamas' terror, Goldberg-Polin encouraged people to remember the plight of those captured.

Broadcast on:: 24 May 2024

Most recently, Goldberg has spoken out about Hamas' decision to release an April 24 video of her son — footage that shows him alive at the time of its recording. The video was the first visible sign since the Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel that Hersh was still alive. "It was a very surreal experience," Goldberg-Polin told CBN News of the clip. "After 201 days, to suddenly hear Hersh's voice was just unbelievable, indescribable, and to see him moving."

However, she also described the difficulty in seeing the obvious health impact of Hersh's capture and captivity. Seeing her vibrant son before Oct. 7 juxtaposed against the video was tough. "It was very hard to see he's clearly in a very fragile medical and compromised medical state," she said. "It was the first time that we're seeing him with the stump of what used to be his left forearm and hand." Despite Hersh losing his arm, having signs of bruising, and being without proper medical treatment for months, Goldberg-Polin said she was elated to have "proof of life" and to be able to celebrate that fact.

"We were extremely grateful, even though it was hard," she said. When Goldberg-Polin was asked what has kept her so vocal and persistent in recent months, as she's commanded audiences with politicians, religious leaders, and others, she said it's really a "reflexive" response on the part of any parent in her position. "A lot of it is, I think, simply the natural response that a mother or a father has when their child is in danger," she said.

Goldberg-Polin also credited prayer as a centering act and something she does "throughout the day" in addition to reciting Psalms. "That is of great comfort to us," she said, expressing gratitude to the people all over the world who have reached out to pray. Our Christian friends and neighbors have been above and beyond exemplary in terms of their outpouring of love, support, and prayer for Hersh and the other hostages."

Amid all of the noise and debate surrounding Israel, Gaza, and the war that followed Hamas' terror, Goldberg-Polin encouraged people to remember the plight of those captured.