Joshua Mollel, a 21-year-old agricultural intern from Tanzania, was abducted by Hamas terrorists on October 7 while in Kibbutz Nahal Oz in Israel with a video of him being killed viral
Tragically, his death was confirmed on December 13, and authorities reported that his body is being held captive in Gaza.
Who is Joshua Loitu Mollel as video of Tanzania agriculture student in Israel being shot dead by Hamas terrorists goes viral
Hamas Killed a Tanzanian student who was held hostage in Gaza….he begged them for his life but the exercuted him anyways.Joshua Mollel was an agricuture student on exchange program, he had only been in israel for a month on his first time trip outside Tanzania pic.twitter.com/q3m4AyZXOe
— AfricaDigest (@africlandpost) December 17, 2023
🔴 Este era Joshua Mollel, un estudiante de Tanzania de apenas 21 años. Se mudó a Israel en septiembre para comenzar estudios agrícolas con la esperanza de algún día comenzar su propia granja.
En un vídeo recientemente publicado por Hamás, se registra su ejecución. Después de… pic.twitter.com/ZLP6dGYqa5
— El Cabo Santo 🇪🇦💚✝️ (@ElCaboSanto) December 17, 2023
Clemence Mtenga, another Tanzanian initially thought to be a hostage from the same attack, was declared dead on November 18. His remains were sent back to Tanzania for burial.
Statement of Tanzania’s FM
Tanzania’s Foreign Minister, January Makamba, stated that Mollel was reportedly “immediately killed after being kidnapped by Hamas,” based on information from Israeli authorities
Mollel’s father, Loitu Mollel, is set to travel to Israel with a government official to gather more details.
Fellow Intern Recalled
Ezekiel Kitiku, a fellow Tanzanian intern living with Mtenga on Kibbutz Nir Oz, recounted that during the attack on October 7, as air raid sirens blared, he exchanged texts with Mtenga and Mollel. They reported seeking shelter but later stopped responding.
Who was Joshua Mollel?
Joshua Mollel, the eldest of five siblings, had completed a diploma in agriculture studies in Morogoro, Tanzania, before heading to Israel in September for his first international experience.
Working on the Kibbutz Nahal Oz dairy farm, he aimed to deepen his farming knowledge with the goal of establishing his agricultural business in Tanzania.
Joshua Mollel’s Father
Loitu Mollel, Joshua’s father, shared his last conversation with his son on October 5, advising him to make the most of his internship. Describing Joshua as “polite, obedient, and serious” about his work, Loitu expressed the family’s anguish, stating they couldn’t eat or sleep, with people noticing his significant weight loss at the market.
In late October, he spoke to AFP, emphasizing that Joshua, not a warrior, had gone for training but found himself in trouble. The family remains distressed, with Joshua’s younger siblings yearning to talk to their absent brother.
In a recent interview, Loitu Mollel revealed Joshua’s name for the first time, shedding light on the family’s pain and the uncertainty surrounding Joshua’s fate since the tragic events on October 7 at Kibbutz Nahal Oz.
Joshua’s aspirations for success in agribusiness and his role as a model for his younger siblings add to the heartbreak of their inability to communicate with him for weeks.
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