Mom whose kidnapped son was killed in a Gaza tunnel gives a searing account of her grief

NewsWorldMiddle EastMom whose kidnapped son was killed in a Gaza tunnel gives a searing account of her griefHersh was among the 251 people abducted by Hamas in its Oct. 7, 2023, attackMelanie Lidman Wednesday 22 April 2026 14:46 BSTBookmarkBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":false,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"CF1:2961857To1","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/hersh-goldberg-polin-rachel-gaza-hostage-memoir-b2962744.html","title":"Mom whose son was killed in a Gaza tunnel gives a searing account of her grief"}}CloseGazan student reflect on how two years of war shaped her childhoodOn The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_On_The_Ground_Newsletter","regTitle":"On The Ground","subscriptionGroup":"on_the_ground","subscriptionGroupId":"14806361-6435-4d19-b06e-05326605fb01","pathPrefix":["/news/world/europe","/news/world/middle-east","/news/world/australasia","/news/world/africa","/asia"],"associatedAuthors":["Bel Trew","Sam Kiley"],"title":"On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","mobileTitle":"Get a weekly international news dispatch","lengthenedMobileTitle":"Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/onTheGround1_1.png","newsletterKey":"receiveOnTheGround","regSourceSection":"Middle East","regSourceMethod":"NSCs"}}As Hersh Goldberg-Polin was held hostage in the tunnels in Gaza, fellow hostag...