Staff Sergeant Omer Van Gelder, aged 22 from Ma'ale Adumim, was among three soldiers who were killed in an explosion in Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip, along with Staff Sergeant Ofek Barhana and Staff Sergeant Omer Van Gelder.
He will be laid to rest on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery in Jerusalem.
After his death, Omer's mother, Tehilah, wrote in a post on Facebook: "My firstborn son. A tremendous loss."
She told Ynet: "For us, the war hasn't stopped for a moment, and at home, for 606 days, the door hasn't closed, so no one would knock on the door. The door was open yesterday, too. They still came. 'What I dreaded has come upon me,' and they came."
Naama Schestman, Omer's aunt, told Kan Reshet Bet radio on Tuesday that her nephew dreamed of being a doctor and volunteered for the MDA ambulance service for years. She shared how he brought his girlfriend for a meal to meet the family and already "spoke about a ring and a wedding after the war."
Omer was an alumnus of the Amit Eitan High School in Ma'ale Adumim. Elior Ohana, who was his teacher, said that he was a "special student, full of love and responsibility." He added: "He was very active in MDA and every volunteer program at the school, and he was the first to come with his guitar, which he would bring everywhere." Daniel Be'eri, principal of the school, added: "Omer was truly special, warm-hearted, and full of energy. Giving to others was a core value for him.”
Omer, 22, from Ma'ale Adumim, was also a relative of Omer Moshe Gealdor, who died in a drone strike in southern Lebanon in November 2024. Gaeldor himself was the son-in-law of terror victim Yaron Gispan.
Omer and two of his comrades from the Givati Brigade fell in Jabaliya. They were traveling in a Hummer when it was struck by an IED, killing all three.