Oren Smadga, father of the late soldier Omer Smadga who was killed in action over the weekend by mortar fire towards the Netzarim corridor, sent a personal message of strength to the soldiers of the Alexandroni Brigade in which his son served.
"Our son Omer Smadga, may his memory be a blessing, fell while defending the State of Israel," wrote Oren, the Olympic medalist and coach of the Israeli judo team.
"Dear Alexandroni Brigade - we encourage you to continue with all your strength, we love you and support your justified fight. Only together will we win, Am Yisrael Chai (The People of Israel Live)."
At the funeral on Friday, Oren said: "From this place, I say to you, soldiers - keep your heads up, continue as strongly as possible, continue to escalate and do not stop until we win. This is my message to everyone involved in this fight. Am Yisrael Chai."
Smadga received the tragic news of his son's death on his birthday. Hours before he learned of his son's death, Oren thanked everyone who had wished him a happy birthday and wished in a post he published for the safe return of the soldiers to their homes. "Thank you to all those who congratulated me, may everyone return home safely, Am Yisrael Chai," wrote Oren.
In the same incident, Saadia Dery, 27, from Tel Aviv, was also killed. He was a student in the Yeshiva of Jaffa and the son of Chaim and Laly from Eli. He was married to Racheli and the father of two small children: Hallel, two years old, and Yinon, one year old.