Bereaved father Oren Smadga, an Olympic medalist and former coach of Israel’s national judo team, on Sunday addressed the nationwide protests for the hostages, urging restraint and responsibility.
Smadga, who lost his son Omer in combat in Gaza, stressed that shutting down the country is not the way to bring the hostages home.
“The claim that the war puts the hostages at risk is very jarring,” he wrote. “We, as Omer’s parents, knew that the war endangered our son and every soldier. Yet they went out to battle for the security of the country. Not once did I see the protesters shutting down the country to prevent our son and other soldiers from going to war.”
He recalled Omer’s dedication on the battlefield: “Inside Gaza, with the heat, the dust, and all the hardships, I never once heard Omer complain. He, and the other soldiers, had a clear goal - to win the war, to destroy those who murdered, raped, and desecrated our brothers. Among all the war’s objectives, bringing our brothers back from Hamas captivity was and remains a top priority.”
Referring to the current demonstrations, Smadga warned: “By shutting down the country, you don’t win - and you may even put a big smile on the enemy’s face. The image that stays with me is Omer, in the height of combat, sleeping in his uniform, ready for another day of fighting to secure the country and bring the hostages home.”
He concluded with a message to Israel’s leaders: “Find every way, every possible path, to bring the deceased hostages to a proper burial and the living hostages back to their families.”