Ehud's Mother Speaks To TJ

by Jeremy Last - Thursday 17th July 2008


The mother of one of the two Israeli soldiers returned to their homeland from Lebanon in coffins on Wednesday has spoken of her hopes for the future now she finally knows that her son is not alive.

Speaking to the Jewish News from her Nahariya home just hours after the Israeli army confirmed the identities of the bodies transferred by Lebanese group Hezbollah, Miki Goldwasser, the mother of IDF reservist Ehud, stated emphatically that "life still goes on".

Top stories

email this page to a friend print this page email the editor buy this content Bookmark and Share
"Today was difficult but luckily we are surrounded by so many people, friends and relatives. I have two other sons and I am looking forward to them being married and having children," Miki said.

The tragic fate of  Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, two of the most prominent missing Israeli soldiers, was finally confirmed on Wednesday. Up until the last moment there had been hopes that at least one of the two was still alive, especially after a Lebanese newspaper was reported to have claimed that only one of the pair of soldiers taken in July 2006 had died.

But reality set in at around 9.45am Israeli time when live television footage from the Lebanese side of the border, broadcast on the country's Al-Manar television station and streamed on the main Israeli TV channels, showed two plain black coffins unloaded from a vehicle.

The situation was confirmed by the IDF at around 3.15pm after Goldwasser and Regev were positively identified by representatives of the IDF Military Rabbinate, the Medical Corps and other forensic experts at the Rosh Hanikra border crossing with Lebanon.

Miki said she "only has good memories" of her son, who had been married for less than a year when he was taken.

"I have so many memories of my son. He was special. I am now surrounded by his friends and his childhood," she said. "(His wife)Karnit is holding on."

The return of the bodies was part of a prisoner exchange with Hezbollah which saw the controversial release of convicted Lebanese murder Samir Kuntar who had been behind bars for nearly 30 years and four Hezbollah gunmen captured during the summer 2006 Second Lebanon War.

Kuntar was put in prison in 1979 after carrying out a deadly terrorism mission in the northern Israeli town of Nahariya where he killed a policeman, a 28-year-old man and his four-year-old daughter.

Reflecting on the painful day she had been through on Wednesday and the previous few days, Miki said she had always hoped her son was alive.

"Till the last minute I was hoping some luck will bless us. But unfortunately now we are facing the truth."

The bodies of some 185 Lebanese and Palestinian fighters were also transferred to Lebanon after being exhumed from a cemetery close to Kibbutz Amiad.

The IDF announced on Wednesday that Goldwasser and Regev have been posthumously promoted to Sergeant Major and First Sergeant, respectively.
"These are difficult times for the Israeli people and the families. The IDF mourns with and accompanies the families in their hour of need," an IDF spokesman said. "This painful process exemplifies Israel's moral commitment to secure the return of all of their soldiers sent out on operational missions. It demonstrates a compelling moral strength which stems from Judaism, Israeli societal values and from the Spirit of the IDF."

The capture of Goldwasser and Regev in an ambush close to the Lebanese border sparked the war with Hezbollah, launched to recover the soldiers.

Upon conclusion of the identification process, the GOC Central Command and the head of The IDF human resources branch delivered the news to the bereaved families at their homes in Nahariya and Kiryat Motzkin.

When the initial images of the coffins were broadcast screams were heard from the house of the Regev family in Kiryat Motzkin.

Later the families managed to compose themselves and spoke briefly to the throngs of journalists gathered around their homes.

Both sets of families have spent much of the last two years traveling around the world campaigning for the release of the 33-year-old Goldwasser and 28-year-old Regev, both of whom were serving on reserve duty at the time of their capture.

Goldwasser's father Shlomo noted the support he received from the Jewish communities. "In the last two years we discovered what a wonderful people (the Jewish nation) is," he said. "We would like to thank the entire Jewish nation. This nation is our answer to (Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah), who is trying to toy with our emotions."

Echoing these words, Regev's father Zvi said: "I thank the Jewish nation, the media and all who have intervened on our behalf. We hoped Udi and Eldad would return alive; now we will have to adjust to a new reality."

Read the latest copy of The Jewish News Online by clicking here.

Bookmark and Share