The President of the State, Mr. Isaac Herzog, and his wife, bereaved families, distinguished guests all.
I placed both my palms on the two largest stones of the Western Wall. In that moment, I felt how great is the power of tangibility. These stones are more than stones: they are living testimonies to what was; they hold the hope for what will be.”
Thus wrote the Jerusalem historian Joseph Klausner about this place where we stand. For thousands of years in the history of the Jewish nation, these stones have witnessed the bravery of its warriors. Every year, when the siren is heard in the cities of Israel, they echo the memory of the fallen. At the foot of these stones, we feel that we are but a chapter in an ancient story, a living link in the chain of generations.
A story that begins with the steps of Abraham our Patriarch, who answered the command ‘Lech Lecha’ and set out to pave the way for generations to come, who would walk in the wake of the promise, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’ – the promise that wove the unbreakable bond between the people and their land.
For the righteousness of this path and for the right to put down roots here, we have fought in every generation; for the fulfillment of the vision and for the assurance of the peace of the people of Israel in their land, we continue to fight even at this hour.
When King David decided to conquer Jerusalem, the city given to all the tribes of Israel, he ascended with his army and conquered the city through the water shaft leading to it. Hundreds of years later, Judah Maccabee, “a man of stratagem, a warrior and mighty in strength from his youth; like a lion’s cub he shall roar for prey,” will lead his warriors up the ascent of Beit Horon and through the Valley of Ajalon.
Two thousand years later, Lieutenant Yoram Elishaiv, son of Kibbutz Beit Oren, will ascend through the trench to capture the Ammunition Hill, his platoon following him. His fighters recount how they repeatedly asked to allow him a break, to lead in his place even for a moment, but he insisted on continuing – throwing grenades incessantly, leading the assault, from one position to another, until he fell at its head, “a leader one could follow with eyes closed,” his fighters said of him.
More than fifty years will pass. On the morning of Simchat Torah, 5784 (2023), a team of fighters will stand in the heart of the inferno, facing a surge of hundreds of terrorists breaching the Gaza border fence. Captain Daniel Peretz, the tank commander, did not wait for orders. He and his crew, Itai Chen, Tomer Leibovitz, and Matan Angerest, immediately went into battle, fully understanding that they were the last line of defense between the murderers and the civilians. The tank of ‘Team Peretz’ fought without pause. Daniel, Itai, and Tomer fell in battle, and Matan returned home after two years in Hamas captivity. The fighters of ‘Tank Peretz’ are a symbol of a generation that responded without hesitation to the call to stand firm.
This is the call that has accompanied our fighters since the dawn of the revival. It beats in the hearts of the fighters today as well.
I had the privilege of commanding a campaign that requires us to make fateful decisions every hour. I draw strength for this from the spirit and bravery of the fighters and commanders. An army that is flesh of the flesh of this people. An army that is this people – whose steadfast forces of the home front are the secret of its resilience. An army in which reservists and their families are part of the beating pulse of the fighting. For hundreds of days of service, with boundless devotion, they prove that their experience is our operational strength, and their sacrifice is the compass of giving for the entire nation.
My subordinates,
I am left speechless by your courage and determination.
There are few among the veterans of our country’s fighters who have participated in a prolonged and complex conflict like the one you are leading. Together with the generation of commanders who fought for the establishment and building of the state, I look at you with pride.
Sons and daughters of the cities and villages, the kibbutzim and moshavim, the pre-military academies and yeshivas, people of all faiths, from all corners of the country. You carry the stretcher up the mountain, changing shoulders, but not resting for a moment.
Judah Maccabee marched on the paths paved by Abraham our Patriarch, and learned the combat legacy of King David; Yoram and his soldiers learned the combat legacy of Judah Maccabee and his warriors; Team Peretz learned the combat legacy of Ammunition Hill and the wars of Israel. The battle of ‘Team Peretz’ is now studied at the IDF’s basic training bases.
A generation that did not seek war, but every day it continues, we are privileged to witness its glory.
Dear bereaved families,
This sacred day is another moment in the ongoing time, during which we share with you the pain of loss. A pain that strikes us with even greater force in the face of the intensity of life. Captain Or Moses, a commander at the Zikim base, bravely and coolly led the blocking battle against the terrorists on October 7th. She ordered the trainees to stay in the shelters, rushed under fire to rescue the wounded, and fell in battle. Yochi, Or’s mother,
eulogized her, saying: “Ori, I have so many grandchildren from you, so many grandchildren.” The roots that Or deepened in the hearts of her subordinates seem to her mother like grandchildren.
I feel the absence of the fallen in my very body. I cannot offer true solace. A shoulder to place beneath the agonizing stretcher of grief that will never leave. Only an embracing hand, and our ranks are also missing the IDF personnel who went on their mission, and we are obligated to bring them back. We will continue to walk alongside the wounded who are struggling with the physical and mental costs left by the war.
The past year has tested us on every front. We stood as an impenetrable wall and attacked those who sought to kill us with a long arm that reaches everywhere.
We brought back the hostages from Hamas captivity. We established new security foundations on the Gaza border and the Syrian border. In Lebanon, we are working to create a new reality and restore security to the northern settlements. We launched an unprecedented campaign against the Iranian regime, which for years built a plan to destroy the State of Israel and developed practical capabilities to implement it. We did not remain silent in the face of our historical mission, we attacked with force and thwarted the regime’s plans. We will continue to stand guard, we will not allow Iran to realize its ambitions, and we will ensure
the eternity of Israel.
Forever we will walk girded with a sword to ensure a vision of prosperity, growth, and peace for our children and grandchildren. To realize this vision, we, as a people, from all parts of the people, require deep partnership in the security mission and bearing the burden through learning and change. This campaign teaches us that these are necessary conditions for our military strength and that cohesion is a condition for our existence.
Thousands of years have passed since King David and Judah Maccabee ascended to Jerusalem. Decades have passed since Yoram charged through the trenches of Ammunition Hill. Months have passed since Team Peretz and Or stood against the terrorists. They will all be our comrades-in-arms forever. Beside them, I and all IDF commanders stand – responding to the same call to continue working for the security of Israel. It is what binds us together. It is our strength.
“Life has no meaning if it is for itself,” wrote the fighter and poet Abba Kovner in the first moments he saw the Western Wall, “only in its connection to existence, to the words that came before you – and are coming from afar to meet you, is there meaning to standing. One – but one in the public.”
IDF soldiers and commanders,
Here, at the foot of the Western Wall, we remember all the fallen and the call they left us to stand together, to ensure the safety of the people and the peace of the land. A call that passes from one fighter to another, defending our people, remembering the fallen, and ensuring the eternity of Israel. May the memory of the fallen be blessed.