The family of soldier Almog Shiloni, whose terrorist murderer was convicted yesterday, told Arutz Sheva of their feelings following the conviction.
“We feel good; this not-so-simple chapter has come to a close,” said Yosef Shiloni, Almog’s father.
“There were difficult decisions and testimonies. We needed to see that cruel terrorist in court degrade us and the honor of the court, and it’s good this is coming to an end. The sentencing certainly reflects what was said during the proceedings.”
Soldier Almog Shiloni was murdered at the entrance to Tel Aviv's Hahagana train station. His murderer was Nur al-Din Abu Hashiya, an 18-year-old from Shechem (Nablus) in Samaria who had illegally entered into sovereign Israeli territory. Al-Din stabbed Shiloni numerous times, including in the upper body and waist, as Shiloni tried to fight him off, but Shiloni eventually died of his wounds.
“During the trial, the heroism of Almog kept coming up, as he kept holding on to his weapon despite the heavy blows he was receiving [...] The terrorist admitted that he had planned to take Almog’s gun and murder everybody [...] We received in Almog’s name a certificate of appreciation from Air Force Commander Gen. [Amir] Eshel for Almog’s heroism, saying that he had saved lives,” Yosef noted.
After Almog’s death, his family decided to erect a house for lone soldiers in Almog’s honor in Modiin. “Today, four [lone] soldiers [those soldiers whose families don’t live in Israel or can't provide support] live there and get the best treatment possible from the community, and every soldier there has an adoptive family,” Yosef said. “We feel that Almog is accompanying us even in these moments, and we see a great blessing in this house.”