A memorial evening was held in Kfar Saba at the Community Synagogue on Wednesday in memory of Itamar Shlezinger, a missing person whose remains were located after two years of searching in the area of the village of Ein Hod.
The event was organized by the organization Biladeihem, which supports families of missing persons, together with Rabbi Lior Engelman, rabbi of the Beit Midrash. Hundreds of people attended, including families of hostages murdered in the October 7th massacre and families of civilians who remain missing and have not yet returned home.
Among those present were families of missing persons, including the families of Moshe Kleinerman, whose disappearance from Meron has drawn national attention since 2022, and Hymanut Kassaou, whose parents recently received a personal commitment from Prime Minister Netanyahu to see her found. Also present was the family of fallen soldier Oz Daniel, who was killed in action during the October 7th massacre, and his body captured.
Meirav Daniel, Oz’s mother, addressed the gathering to encourage the other families of the missing. She spoke of the unbearable uncertainty and pain involved in the long wait, clinging to hope that their loved ones would return home. Daniel also shared that she personally joined searches for missing persons alongside volunteers from the Israel Dog Unit (IDU).
Israel Dog Unit director Yekutiel Ben-Yaakov spoke about several missing-person cases still open and called on the hundreds present to take part in the search efforts.
During the event, families of the missing issued a renewed call to the Israeli government to take responsibility for civilian missing persons as well, stressing the demand to bring everyone home. “We do not leave anyone behind," they said.