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While then-UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-Moon did condemn the ceasefire violation at the time, Goldin said that “there has only been a four-year long, painful and brutal silence” from the UN since then, except for a December 2017 UN Security Council session discussing repatriating captured Israeli soldiers.“Mr. Mladenov, we have met several times, both in Israel and at the UN General Assembly… Nonetheless, and although you are deeply concerned with the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, I have never heard you call for the return of Hadar to Israel,” she said.Saying that all UN institutions and representatives are responsible for seeing that obligations to international humanitarian law are kept by all parties, Goldin addressed Mladenov: “it is your role that requires making demands of Hamas and representation [sic] to the Palestinian Authority; to remedy the violations of international humanitarian rights and humanitarian law; and to put an end to this culture of impunity.”MLADENOV, WHO serves as the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, has in recent weeks met with Israeli, Palestinian and Egyptian officials in an effort to calm tensions between Israel and Hamas.After the reading of the letter, other members of Misdar Hadar blew shofar blasts and the assembly sung the “Hatikvah” national anthem. Goldin’s family then walked up to the gate of the UN complex.The complex in Armon Hanatziv is the official headquarters of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization, a group focused on peacekeeping in the Middle East.Leah Goldin spoke to the security guard in English, asking if she could deliver the letter to Mladenov. A security guard said a senior UN official would come to receive the letter; minutes later, an unidentified UN official came and took the letter from Goldin through the gate, promising to deliver the letter to Mladenov.Goldin thanked the official, and then she and her family spoke to the press in Hebrew. She reiterated the demands of her letter, while Hadar’s brother Tzur Goldin added that the family is not against providing humanitarian aid to Gaza but believes the return of Hadar and other captive Israelis must be part of any deal.When asked by a reporter about the government’s role in bringing Hadar back, Goldin declined to comment, saying that her family’s focus at the protest was on the UN’s role, not the government’s.She has, however, directly protested in recent weeks against the Israeli’s government perceived inaction, including in a July conference at the Knesset.Speaking with The Jerusalem Post after the protest concluded, Hadar’s brother Tzur said that both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority must be held accountable for the his return, and the UN should not give humanitarian aid or foster a humanitarian deal for Gaza “before the PA takes care of returning the captives to Israel.”“We are here [at the UN complex] at nine o’clock, four years after the hardest moments in my life, and in our lives… exactly four years after my brother was captured,” he said, because of Mladenov’s current efforts.He added that Mladenov is working to find a solution for the residents of Gaza, but “he is neglecting to solve the problem of the captives.”
Family protests UN’s inaction on return of Hadar Goldin's remains
The protest was arranged by “Misdar Hadar” (The Order of Hadar), which is a group of volunteers advocating for the return of Hadar’s body.
