Imagine This Was Your Son

Stand for Israel | September 24, 2019

ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT-GAZA-MISSING — This picture taken on August 29, 2018 shows a reproduction of a photo of Israeli soldier Lieutenant Hadar Goldin taken while on army duty, as shown by his parents at their family home in the central Israeli city of Kfar Saba. - From the living room of their home in central Israel, surrounded by books and family photos, Leah and Simha Goldin have waged a years-long campaign to bring back the remains of their son, Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, a soldier killed in the 2014 Gaza war, and whose body is believed to be held by Hamas. (Photo by - / FAMILY HANDOUT / AFP) (Photo credit should read -/AFP/Getty Images)

It has been five years since Israel’s last all-out war in Gaza, 2014’s Operation Protective Edge. And it has been five years since Hadar Goldin and another IDF soldier were kidnapped and murdered by Hamas terrorists. Israel Hayom’s Yaron Doron tells us how Hadar’s mother traveled to the United Nations Human Rights Council to tell them how “Hamas has cruelly tormented our family” and what it can do to change its anti-Israel policies:

“Hadar was 23 years old. A gifted artist, he was engaged to be married to the love of his life, Edna, in [the] summer [of] 2014. But that August, hours after a UN ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, Hamas terrorists emerged from a tunnel in Gaza, ambushed an IDF unit and killed Hadar. For five years, Hamas has been holding our son and the remains of another soldier, Oron Shaul, refusing to release them in flagrant violation of the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law.”
“For five years, Hamas has cruelly tormented our family, denying Hadar a proper burial and Red Cross access.”
“In June, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2474 mandating all nations share responsibility to return the remains of missing persons in armed conflict and for UN special envoys to take this into account in implementing their mandates.”
“Last month, I met Secretary-General Guterres, who reiterated he stands behind the resolution calling to immediately and unconditionally release our son’s remains.”
“This is not my mission alone. It is a mission we all share. As mothers and fathers, please imagine just for a moment: What if this was your son?”