The families of six young Israeli hostages murdered by Hamas terrorists in Gaza last year marked the first Hebrew calendar anniversary of their deaths on Tuesday, with memorial ceremonies at cemeteries and other sites across Israel.

Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Almog Sarusi, Or Danino and Alex Lubanov — known in Israel as the “Beautiful Six” — were killed by their captors on August 29, 2024, after surviving almost 11 months in captivity.

Their bodies were retrieved by the IDF two days later from a tunnel in southern Gaza, during fighting in Rafah.

On Tuesday evening, thousands of friends and supporters of Hersh Goldberg-Polin gathered with his family in the Valley of the Cross in Jerusalem to remember the 23-year-old, who was abducted from a bomb shelter after fleeing the massacre at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023.

His parents, Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin, spoke of their son’s qualities, his legacy, and the void his death has left.

Both wore a piece of tape with the number “683” written on it in black, marking the number of days that have passed since 251 people were abducted from Israel, and the number of days in captivity endured by the remaining 50 hostages.

“Sometimes I look deep into my own eyes. I unzip them — my eyes — and I can hear you. And I know you’re here inside,” said Rachel, gesturing toward her heart. “Even though I can’t see you with my eyes — that are your eyes, that are my eyes. Like the too-big ocean that I cannot always see. But there is no doubt that it is there.”

“We are born; we live; and we leave,” she said. “We love, we learn, we grow, we create. Some are here for a moment, others for a lifetime — but the ending is always the same.”

“What remains can be a legacy, a lesson, a breeze, or nothing at all,” she mused. “Usually, only love........

© The Times of Israel