Paulina Tregerman, the grandmother of four-and-a-half-year-old Daniel who was killed by a rocket that was fired towards southern Israel during Operation Protective Edge in 2014, came to Jerusalem on Sunday to protest during the visit by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and to demand the return of the soldiers whose bodies have been held by Hamas since 2014.
"For the past 182 Fridays we have been meeting in the south, near the Gaza envelope. I have lived in the Gaza envelope for 53 years, since I made Aliyah to Israel, and the protest is about the fact that the boys were abducted in front of our eyes and should be returned home," she said, noting the IDF value that soldiers must not be abandoned on the ground. "Whoever left them there, should bring back them back."
In her remarks, Paulina expressed great appreciation for the special way in which Hadar Goldin's parents are conducting their protest.
"They are wonderful people, I do not know what I would be like if I were in their place. They just want their son home. I do not like to say that the boys are dead, but they should be brought for burial. It has been seven years," she said. "I went through all the wars in the envelope. I live near Rafah and hear every day what is going on in the Gaza Strip and I do not think we should let Hamas run our lives."
Paulina noted that every day she sees the convoys of equipment entering the Gaza Strip. "I do not know what is in these trucks, but one can be afraid. These are trucks that are completely covered."