The names of three siblings who were killed in the deadly Iranian missile strike in Beit Shemesh yesterday have been released: 13-year-old Sarah Biton, 15-year-old Avigail Biton, and 16-year-old Yaakov Biton.
Also killed in the incident were Bruria Gloria Cohen and her son Yosef (Yossi) Cohen; Sarah Elimelech, her daughter Ronit Elimelech, Oren Katz, and teenager Gabriel Baruch Revach.
Over the course of the night, the funeral of Gabriel Rachav was held. The funeral for Bruria Cohen and her son Yosef Cohen took place at 3:00 PM at the Beit Shemesh cemetery.
Oren Katz's funeral was held this morning. He had gone upstairs to the shelter to close the door when he was killed by the Iranian missile. His wife, Smadar, eulogized him: "Your giving cost you your life yesterday. You went upstairs to close the shelter. Your giving paid a heavy price, and you taught us what giving is. You will always be with us, we will not forget you."
Yosef, Katz's son, eulogized him: "You were always a special person who cared for everyone, just not for yourself. Yesterday, you came home in the middle of the workday to make sure we had food for lunch. I'm happy I had the honor to eat your food for the last time. You had something special in your hands. You told us that we were your reason to live. This is our country, and this is our people. I ask everyone to contribute what they can. When going to war, everyone must join in."
The preliminary investigation findings reveal that the missile, containing approximately 500 kilograms of explosives, struck a building in Beit Shemesh around 2:00 PM. It fell on a synagogue, which had an underground shelter. To reach the shelter, two flights of stairs had to be descended.
Inside the damaged shelter, at least three people were killed. Another victim was in the stairwell of the shelter, and another was at the entrance to the staircase. The remaining victims were outside the building.