Hundreds of Kfar Saba residents gathered on Sunday evening to show support for the Goldin family after it was announced that the body of Lt. Hadar Goldin was positively identified after being returned from over 11 years of Hamas captivity.
Neighbors, accountancies, and friends, along with members of the local chapter of the Bnei Akiva youth movement, where Hadar was a counselor, gathered outside the family’s home, holding signs with the verses “And the children shall return to their borders” and “And G-d’s redeemed shall return.”
At an especially moving moment, those present joined together in singing the prayer: “our brothers and sisters, the whole house of Israel, who are given over to trouble or captivity, whether they abide on the sea or on the dry land: May the All-present have mercy upon them, and bring them forth from trouble to relief, from darkness to light, and from subjugation to redemption, now speedily and at a near time. Now let us say, Amen.”
The Kfar Saba community, especially its youth, has been by the Goldins’ side throughout the 11-year ordeal. In August 2014, one day after the abduction, when it was still thought that he was alive in Hamas captivity, Arutz Sheva reported from outside the Hadar’s family home, where neighbors had gathered to sing, pray, and support his family.
