A man from London has been confirmed dead five days after going missing following a Hamas attack on a music festival.
26-year-old Jake Marlowe had not been seen since the invasion early on Saturday morning (Oct. 7) when he was providing security for the event in the desert near Kibbutz Re’im, close to the Gaza border.
Confirming the news in a Facebook post, his parents said: “We are heartbroken to have to inform you the crushing news that our son Jake has been confirmed dead in Southern Israel. Repatriation plans are being put in to place, more information will follow. Please respect our privacy at this most devastating time.”
Speaking to the Evening Standard, they said that Marlowe had reached out earlier in the week, saying “rockets were flying over” the festival, and that he promised to keep them updated.
A former pupil at the JFS School in Kenton, Marlowe moved to Israel in November 2021 after fears of rising anti-Semitism. According to his friend, Daniel Aboudy, per inews.co.uk, “[Marlowe] felt that it was his duty to trace back to his roots and find his home that he felt he truly belonged to in Israel. He also had a desire to enlist in the army at one point but unfortunately wasn’t given the opportunity to do so. He was very determined to fight for what we believed in as the Jewish people.”
Concerns remain for the safety of British citizens in the region, as the BBC reported that 17 UK nationals are either dead or missing, including children.
The war, which has already claimed at least 2,200 lives, is expected to escalate and compound the misery of those living in Gaza, where basic necessities were already in short supply.
