Dozens of family members, friends, and residents gathered on Sunday to accompany 18-year-old Yehuda Shmuel Sherman, of blessed memory, to his final resting place after he was murdered in a vehicular ramming attack on Shabbat near Homesh.
The funeral procession began in the early afternoon at the “Shuva Israel" farm, established by his brother Daniel in memory of fallen comrades. The site, built out of loss and resilience, became the first station in a painful farewell-where grief intertwined with quiet strength and determination to continue forward.
From there, the mourners were set to proceed to the “Rachamei Tirzah" synagogue in the community of Elon Moreh, where eulogies would be delivered in his memory. The procession would then continue to the cemetery, where Yehuda Shmuel would be laid to rest.
He is survived by his parents, Yehoshua and Sima, and six siblings. His brother Daniel, who was with him at the time of the attack, sustained moderate injuries.
Sima eulogized her son: “A model son, devoted to the Land of Israel, with a heart as vast as his love for his people. Yehuda Shmuel, you are our righteous one."
Yehoshua, mourned his son with profound sorrow: “Yehuda Shmuel ascended as a sacrifice to God, a boy with pure heart who loved the Land of Israel with his entire soul. A child of the generation of redemption."
Through his tears, the father continued: “A bottomless void has opened in our hearts. We send you forth, a courageous warrior, a true hero. Take hold of God’s throne of glory and plead on our behalf, for we yearn for redemption now."
During the eulogies, the father addressed the government, urging decisive action: “I call upon the Prime Minister, my colleague and Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and my dear friend Yehuda Eliyahu. Our son Yehuda is a public sacrifice. The Government of Israel must erase the disgrace of the Oslo Accords. Stop labeling parts of our holy land with derogatory designations - Areas A, B, and C. All of the Land of Israel is ours."
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich added: “We will dismantle the authority of evil and terror known as the Palestinian Authority. We will erase the lines, the definitions, and the letters, and settle our land in its entirety."
Initial findings indicate that the two brothers were riding in an off-road vehicle when they were ambushed by a Palestinian vehicle that sped toward them from the village of Beit Omrin and struck them. A third Israeli who was with them was not injured.
From his hospital bed, Daniel recounted the terrifying moments leading up to the attack.
“We were patrolling the area around the farm," he said. “I was descending a steep asphalt road when I noticed a white pickup truck waiting at the side. The driver saw me and stayed there. The moment I passed him, he spun around, chased after me, accelerated toward me-and at a sharp turn by a cliff, he rammed into me and threw me off."
Daniel lost consciousness for long minutes. When he came to, he found himself amid the wreckage at the bottom of the cliff. Despite his injuries, he immediately turned his attention to his brother.
“I called out to him several times, but he didn’t respond," he said. “That gave me the strength to get up, even though I was in pain. I reached him and saw he was gasping, so I opened his airway."
As Daniel fought to save his brother, the situation around them deteriorated further.
“Arabs from the village began arriving from above and below," he recounted. “They were shouting, cursing us, and throwing stones."
Despite the chaos and his condition, Daniel managed to call for help. Security and rescue forces arrived under difficult terrain conditions and evacuated the two. At the hospital, however, doctors were forced to pronounce Yehuda Shmuel dead.
Later, dozens of friends and family gathered once more at the Shuva Israel farm. In a deeply emotional scene, they bid farewell through song-voices trembling, yet united in remembrance.
The gathering reflected not only sorrow, but also the enduring spirit that those close to Yehuda Shmuel say he embodied-a life cut short, yet one that leaves behind a legacy of courage, connection, and unwavering dedication.