The State of Israel celebrated its traditional Memorial Day Sunday night, adding 620 soldiers to the list of soldiers killed in combat since the country’s independence in 1948.
In Israel, a small society, Remembrance Day is taken very seriously, and nearly everyone knows or is connected to someone who has been killed in action over the decades.
Sunday night’s ceremony was particularly poignant, as the country remembered the soldiers lost in the Oct. 7 fighting and those who have died since then in battles between Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah on its northern border.
Israelis also prayed for the rescue of dozens of hostages. The hostages, many of them soldiers, are still being held in harsh conditions in the Gaza Strip by Hamas, which has refused to release them in recent talks.
The official Memorial Day ceremony took place at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Judaism’s holiest site.
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Helj Halevi Said Those gathered claimed that he took personal responsibility “for the fact that the IDF failed in its mission to protect the Israeli people on October 7.”
He concluded with a statement of determination: “In this war, we are determined to complete our mission, even if we understand the cost.”
At another ceremony nearby, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the sacrifices of Arab Israelis (translated by the government press office).
All soldiers participating in this difficult war, whether Jews, Druze, Christians, Muslims, Bedouins or Circassians, have a firm commitment to our country.
A few months ago, I paid tribute to the Abu Latif family in Rahat. I hugged the family of Ahmad Abu Latif, a Bedouin soldier who had fallen in battle. I told them I understand what they are going through. Like them, my parents suffered greatly when my brother was killed. Ahmad’s father, Tufik, said his son would say he is “proud to be a Bedouin serving in the Israel Defense Forces.”
When Ahmad joined the army on October 7, he said he would not return home until the last hostage was home. Mr. Ahmad was unable to see the mission completed. We are about halfway there and we are committed to completing this sacred mission.
A month before my visit to Rahat, I visited a Bedouin reconnaissance battalion. One Bedouin officer described the horrors he witnessed on his way to Gaza on October 7. He hurried to join his unit, but on the way he saw a murdered woman. I won’t go into detail about what he saw, but he told me: “It is that abomination that we are fighting,” he emphasized to us. We all fight together. Because that’s the only way to defeat the Hamas monster that wants to wipe us all out.
President Isaac Herzog also paid his respects (translated by the Government Press Office):
If I could stand here tonight and tell the story of each of us who have fallen this year and throughout the years, I would. And then, reluctantly and painfully, I spoke about their portion. Because behind every story and every candle burns a huge flame of heroism, strength, life, and so much more.
Dear people of Israel, at this sacred moment we remind ourselves and the entire world. We did not want this terrible war, nor did we choose it. Neither this nor its predecessor. All we wanted was to return to Zion, from which we had been forcibly exiled, and there regain our freedom in a Jewish democratic state. To build a life here. future. Hope. We have always dreamed of peace and good relations with all the peoples and countries of this region, and this will never change. But we will not lay down the sword as long as the enemy seeks to destroy us.
The last few months have been very painful. But in them we learned the strength of a great and awe-inspiring people who rose from terrible destruction and fought like lions. We found IDF and security forces fighters ranging in age from 18 to 96 years old. In every branch, on every front, in the south, in the north, in Judea and Samaria, and everywhere. Those who are putting themselves at risk for us always simply ask – do not forget that we are one people. That we have value. It’s just worth it.
This tearing of the fabric, this bloody tearing that we are all feeling in our hearts this year, cannot remain meaningless. Family members say this over and over again. The tears of the people’s hearts must heal the tears of the nation. This tearing is both a cry and a cry. A call to action, a call to stand up. Stand up as one people.
…
My brothers and sisters in Israel. Even today in our national sorrow, I know, and I believe with all my heart, that a new dawn will rise over all Israel. By their accomplishments, for them, and for us. May the memory of the fallen members of the Israel Defense Forces and the victims of hostilities against us be preserved at the heart of our nation for generations to come.
Memorial Day is followed by Israel’s Independence Day, which runs from Monday night to Tuesday.
Several Biden administration officials reached out to Israelis and their fellow Israelis to wish them Memorial Day. Corresponding personPerhaps acknowledging the damage caused by President Joe Biden’s public decision to withhold arms from Israel over the battle in Rafah, which Israelis overwhelmingly believe must be fought to win the war. Probably.
Joel B. Pollack is a senior editor at Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday Sunday nights from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET (4:00 PM to 7:00 PM PT) on Sirius XM Patriot. He is the author of a recently published e-book.The Zionist conspiracy (and how to join it)‘ is now available on Audible. He is also the author of an e-book. Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 US Presidential Election. He is the recipient of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter @joelpolak.
