Israeli
soldiers stand at attention during a Memorial Day ceremony at the
Western Wall Tuesday. (photo credit: Noam Moskowitz / Flash90)
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The IDF commemorates memorial day and remembers its fallen soldiers.
IDF Remembers Fallen Soldier Dan Talasnikov
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Each year, the citizens and soldiers of
Israel take 24 hours to remember its fallen comrades. On May 2, 2005,
Talasnikov and his team of paratroopers conducted an undercover
operation in Tulkarem. During the mission, Talasnikov was leading his
team when he was killed by a terrorist.
IDF head Gantz vows to safeguard nation as Israel remembers its fallen
‘I stand before you and promise to fulfill the most precious oath of all, to protect you, protect all of us, and to protect our home,’ army chief says at Jerusalem ceremony
Israel stood
at attention at Tuesday night as sirens heralding the start of Memorial
Day blared across the country in memory of the nation’s fallen.
The country’s main memorial ceremony began at
the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City. The flag in the plaza’s center
fluttered at half-mast as President Shimon Peres stood at attention
alongside IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz and a memorial torch was lit.
Peres spoke first, offering words of comfort
to the many grieving families: “We can gather all of the words from dawn
till dusk, we can consult experts, try every expression, sentence,
word, and I know that the word capable of healing the pain hasn’t been
found.”
“This is the same darkness that descends
on our land every day, but while this is an evening hour for the rest of
the people of Israel, for yourselves - bereaved families - this time of
heartbreaking sadness does not fade with time,” he said. ”No act
or gesture on our part can heal your hearts, memories do not let go.”
Gantz used his turn at the podium to vow to protect the country.
“I stand before you and promise to fulfill the
most precious oath of all, to protect you, protect all of us, and to
protect our home,” he said. ”We mourned our friends and officers, then
our subordinates, and over the years, unfortunately, their children grew
up and chose to their way. This is the wonderful and terrible chain
which chills the body at the siren tearing the silence, the heart.”
Israel began its Memorial Day ceremonies on
Tuesday afternoon for the 25,470 soldiers, service personnel, and
victims of terror who have died serving the Jewish State.
Through the decades, 22,993 soldiers have lost
their lives, and 2,477 civilians — including 120 foreign nationals,
tourists, and workers — have died in terror attacks. In the past year,
126 soldiers died and 15 civilians were killed in terror attacks.
The most recent victim was Lieutenant Hila Betzaleli, who was killed last Wednesday when a lighting structure collapsed onto
the stage at Mount Herzl where she and other soldiers were rehearsing
for Wednesday night’s official Independence Day opening ceremony.
Betzaleli’s mother, Sigalit, will light one of the symbolic torches that
are kindled during that ceremony.
Decades
of conflict have left 10,524 bereaved families, 2,396 orphans and 4,992
widows of service personnel in Israel, according to figures released by
the IDF.
Sirens marking the national memorial day for two minutes at 11 a.m. Wednesday.
Earlier Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, and the two chief rabbis
attended a ceremony at the Yad Labanim memorial site in Jerusalem.
At the Knesset on Tuesday evening, during an
event titled “Songs for their Memory,” Rivlin, government ministers, and
police chief Yohanan Danino will read excerpts from poems written by
and about fallen soldiers and those killed in terror attacks.
In addition, thousands of participants in the
Masa program, which brings young Jewish adults from around the world to
visit Israel, will participate in a ceremony at the Armored Corps
Memorial Site and Museum at Latrun, 25 kilometers west of Jerusalem.
Memorial events have been held since the beginning of the week. Gantz placed flags on Sunday at Mount Herzl at
the graves of the most recently fallen soldiers, including that of
Betzaleli. “These tombstones represent lives that were cut off
prematurely and dreams that will never come to fruition,” Gantz said.
Sigalit Betzaleli broke down in tears at the event, crying out, “This is my daughter, watch over her.”
Defense
Minister Ehud Barak on Monday placed a memorial flag in the cemetery of
Kibbutz Mishmar Hasharon, where he grew up and where nine soldiers are
interred.
The Wednesday morning siren will launch
official ceremonies at cemeteries, IDF bases, and schools around the
country. Over a million people, including 190 bereaved families from
abroad who were flown to Israel for the ceremonies, are expected to
visit the country’s 44 military cemeteries. Army figures indicate that
23,000 candles will be lit at graves and 124,000 wreaths of flowers laid
beside them.
A million bottles of water will be provided at
Wednesday’s ceremonies as a precaution against the hot weather. The
Defense Ministry will also distribute 1.8 million stickers carrying the
slogan “Blood of the Maccabees,” recalling the second-century Jewish
army that fought to liberate Judea from foreign rule.
Memorial Day events will end on Wednesday
evening with the beginning of Independence Day ceremonies at Mount Herzl
in Jerusalem. At the official ceremony, which will include marching
displays, a space will be left vacant on the stage to mark the position
that would have been filled by Hila Betzaleli.
The family has supported the decision to
proceed with the Independence Day event as scheduled, saying that this
was what their daughter would have wanted.
