TIMES OF ISRAEL
Neighbors gather on street for Jerusalem family burying son
Jessica Steinberg
October 13, 2023

Hundreds of neighbors in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Arnona are gathering with Israeli flags to accompany the family of Anar Elyakim Shapira, as they boarded buses to bury their son, grandson and brother. Shapira was killed during the Hamas massacre at the Supernova desert rave, as he saved the lives of friends around him, reportedly throwing out grenades that were tossed into the field shelter where he and others were standing. Shapira and his friend, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, went to the desert rave together on October 6 at night, camping out before Hamas invaded the event attended by thousands of young people. Goldberg-Polin, whose arm was blown off, is being held hostage in Gaza. READ MORE

PEOPLE Mother of American-Israeli Hostage, 23, Shares Her Anguish as She Prays for His Return: ‘Going Through Hell’ When people ask Rachel Goldberg how she is doing following the kidnapping of her 23-year-old firstborn and only son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, she speaks plainly: “Terrible,” accompanied by a soft shrug. Hersh, an American-Israeli born in Berkeley, Calif., was at the deadly Nova music festival in Israel, where more than 260 attendees were massacred by Hamas terrorists. While taking cover in a bomb shelter, a grenade blew off Hersh’s arm from the elbow down. When Hamas ordered those who could walk to leave the shelter, Hersh was among them, and his phone would soon ping from across the border in Gaza, where authorities say he is being held hostage.