The young American-Israeli who was taken hostage by Hamas terrorists during their slaughter at a desert rave had his arm blown off during the gunfire, his mother revealed Tuesday – and even had to fashion his own tourniquet to save his life.
“Unfortunately, what we heard about Hersh [from eyewitnesses] is that his arm was blown off from his elbow down,” Rachel Golberg told CNN of the last known whereabouts of her son, Hersh Golberg-Polin.
“He tourniqueted his own arm.”
Golberg-Polin, who just turned 23 last week, was attending the outdoor concert party in the northern Negev Saturday when Hamas terrorists burst in and started gunning down innocent party-goers.
Golberg-Polin and other revelers were forced into a bomb shelter while the militants rained grenades and gunfire down on them, Rachel explained.
“Hersh and his good friend were trying to throw grenades back out of bomb shelter,” the desperate mother said of info from eyewitnesses.
One young woman who found herself next to Golberg-Polin in the bomb shelter later told his parents that the Berkeley, California, native comforted her during the ordeal.
When the gunfire settled and the attackers demanded that anyone who could walk should follow them outside, the woman played dead – but Golberg-Polin was “very calm” and followed the captors, his parents added.
While Golberg-Polin’s family – which includes two younger sisters – are fearing the worst as the death toll rises, they are also hopeful that they will receive news of his whereabouts soon.
“I truly feel that the American government and President Biden…are working tirelessly…to ensure that these American civilians who are being held hostage are freed, [and] taken care of,” Rachel told CNN.
“[And that they] can see to it that this civilian American who is critically wounded is tended to,” she added.
Golberg-Polin’s family’s update came shortly after grisly footage emerged of Hamas terrorists storming the music celebration early Saturday – and eventually leaving 260 people dead in their wake.
When the violence broke out, Golberg-Polin texted his parents “I love you” and “I’m sorry” before becoming unreachable, his family previously said.
Golberg-Polin was celebrating both his birthday and his release from compulsory military service, which he finished in April, his father, Jon Polin, told the Jerusalem Post.
In the months since his discharge, the young man had been working as a waiter and a medic in order to save for a trip to India, Jon told the outlet.
Golberg-Polin, who is Jewish, made aliyah – or immigrated to Israel – with his family in 2008.
Prior to relocating to Jerusalem, the family was living in Richmond, Virginia.
As of Tuesday, the death toll in Israel has reached 900, with another 2,800 wounded and at least 500 still hospitalized.
The timing of Hamas’ surprise attack lined up with both Simchat Torah – a major Jewish holiday marking the completion of the cycle of Torah readings – and the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War.