A New Yorker believed to have been held captive by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip was killed during an earlier attack on October 7, and his body is still being held by the terrorists, it was confirmed Thursday.
Judi Weinstein Haggai, 70, died of injuries she sustained when terrorists attacked Kibbutz Nir Oz, the kibbutz announced.
She and her husband had been walking as usual outside the kibbutz when armed Hamas militants on motorcycles ambushed them that morning, relatives said.
News of her death comes just a week after officials confirmed her husband, Gadi Haggai, 73, was killed in custody.
Judith Weinstein Haggai and her husband, Gadi Haggai, were walking in the morning near Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7 when they were ambushed by radical Hamas terrorists during an attack on Israel. AP
Weinstein, originally from Goshen in upstate New York, moved to Israel 30 years ago, seeking solace in the Jewish state — until a surprise Hamas terrorist attack on October 7 shattered their peaceful existence.
She works as an English teacher who specializes in working with children with special needs and attention and concentration problems, according to Israel’s National News.
Keep up with the news on the Israel-Hamas war and the surge in global antisemitism with The Post’s Israel War Updates, delivered straight to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Weinstein also helps children who suffer from anxiety and depression as a result of living under the threat of rockets from Gaza.
His family described him as a quiet person — a vegan who wrote daily haikus, CNN reported.
Judith Weinstein Haggai has died in captivity. AP
But his world was turned upside down during a Hamas terrorist attack, when Weinstein informed a kibbutz member he had been shot in the arm and wounded in the face and that Haggai had been shot in the head, according to Haaretz.
Just before the couple was believed to be taken hostage, Weinstein also managed to send a text to his daughter in Singapore. A paramedic then told the couple’s children that he had called for medical help – but they lost contact with him.
“He said they were shot by terrorists on motorcycles and my father was seriously injured,” Iris Weinstein Haggai told the Times of Israel.
“Paramedics tried to send an ambulance to him. The ambulance was hit by a rocket.”
The family has not heard from the elderly couple since.
Judith Weinstein and her husband, Gadi Haggai, with their family. Haggai’s family
“We know they are seriously injured. We know that [Weinstein] still have the phone with him to be able to call and ask for help and give details. But since then, we lost all contact with them,” the couple’s niece, Ofri Haggai, 47, told The Post last month.
The phone was recovered hours later by Israeli forces – raising hopes that the couple may have been among the more than 220 Israelis taken hostage during the brutal attack, rather than among those killed, he added.
Family members have pushed for Weinstein’s release, and initially thought he could be among the 50 women and children released under a deal last month.
But she never returned home, and is believed to be the last American woman still held hostage in the Gaza Strip. Six other Americans, all men, also remain in custody.
Hagai left behind four children and seven grandchildren.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
