A Nation's Enduring Anguish: The Unending Wait for Hadar's Return

There are moments, aren't there, when hope flares up like a sudden, unexpected match in the dark? And then, just as quickly, it's snuffed out, leaving the shadows feeling even deeper than before. Such was the case recently for Israel, and more poignantly, for the Goldin family, when a ripple of information suggested that the remains of their son, Hadar Goldin, might finally be coming home from Gaza. Oh, the immediate, agonizing twist in the gut that must have brought.

But alas, it was a cruel, bewildering twist of fate, or perhaps just a very public misunderstanding, for the news proved to be entirely unfounded. The Israeli military, you see, quickly clarified: no, Hadar's body, tragically, had not been returned. The Goldin family themselves, with a heartbreaking familiarity born of years of waiting, were quick to refute the reports, asserting that their beloved son's remains remain firmly in the hands of Hamas. It’s a situation, honestly, that feels like a wound that simply refuses to heal, year after year.

Hadar Goldin, a Second Lieutenant in the Givati Brigade, was, as many will recall, killed during what we remember as Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip, back in the summer of 2014. His death occurred in what became known as Black Friday — a horrific ambush that also claimed the lives of Major Benaya Sarel and Staff Sergeant Liel Gidoni. Hadar’s body, along with that of Staff Sergeant Oron Shaul, was subsequently seized by Hamas. And here we are, all these years later, still talking about it, still waiting.

You could say it's more than just two soldiers; it's a national promise, a collective yearning. Beyond the soldiers, two Israeli civilians, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, are also believed to be held by the militant group, their fates equally shrouded in a distressing silence. Their families, too, are trapped in this agonizing limbo, desperately clinging to any sliver of information, any sign of life, any whisper of a return.

Over the years, Israel has, in truth, engaged in various, often complex, prisoner exchange deals with Hamas. There was the Shalit deal, for example, which saw Gilad Shalit returned after five years in captivity, a moment of national jubilation mixed with deep controversy. But for Hadar, for Oron, for Avera, for Hisham, those grand, painful exchanges haven't materialized. The Goldin family, in particular, has become a powerful, unwavering voice, a constant reminder to the Israeli government and its people that this chapter, this deeply personal and national wound, is far from closed. Their pain, their advocacy, their sheer resilience, truly resonate across the country. And so, the wait, heavy and relentless, continues for what feels like an eternity.