The parents of Hillel Mordechai Dadon, the seven-and-a-half-year-old boy from Beit Shemesh who was brutally murdered by a neighbor in an inflatable pool in his backyard, spoke to i24NEWS about the tragedy that has shattered their family.
Hillel’s father, Amos Dadon, spoke of his son with profound grief. “God entrusted him to us for seven and a half years, and we say thank you," he said. “It’s not a conflict or anything. It happened suddenly."
Hillel’s mother, Tamar, said she sensed something unusual on the morning of the tragedy. “In the morning, he said goodbye to me. He hugged me for a long time, a hug that didn’t end, like he had never hugged me before. I didn’t imagine it was the last hug I would ever have."
She described how her life changed in an instant. “I went to buy balloons and refreshments for a birthday. I was called back home and understood that something was wrong. The suspect in the murder is my brother’s neighbor. My brother’s child was also bleeding. At first, I was sure it was a nationalistic attack. I never thought he would die. I hoped there would be a miracle, but there wasn’t."
Through tears, Tamar eulogized her son. “He was a cute, smiling boy. I called him Smiley. He always had a happy face. He was frustrated that he was the youngest and always wanted another brother."