Thousands accompanied Ofir Sarfati, who was murdered by Hamas and whose body was rescued from Gaza by the IDF, to rest in the Eretz Haim cemetery in Kiryat Ata. Ofir, who attended a party in Re'im, was considered kidnapped, but yesterday the bitter news reached his family.
Ofir's mother eulogized him and said: "I'm standing here and still don't understand what I'm doing here. We went through two difficult and painful months that ended today. Everything has gone silent and stopped, everything I had will no longer be my Ofir. In my worst dreams, I never imagined that I would find myself standing here at your funeral.
Abductees on the way to Israel (archive)
"Ofir, how many special and noble qualities were in you, you were giving to Sufi, you were a pure and clean soul. You always chose to see the good in a person, anyone who came into contact with you, you continued with him deep in your heart. Love of man was your guiding light, an angel from heaven, you were an angel in human form. The sky has fallen upon us, the disaster is heavy and the loss is immense. How cruel fate can be, the reality is painful and difficult if it were possible to welcome you back for just a minute and tell you again how much I love you and hug you and thank you for twenty-seven years of contentment, of wealth, of pride, of joy, of endless love, thank you for being a beloved and charming brother to Shoval and Lior.
"Ofiri, I refuse to accept the gauze seer, I will probably never understand the meaning that I will never see you. We will continue living with you and by your side you have left us a vast legacy of strength of soul, of love, spontaneous suggestions of family reunification, of sportsmanship, of modesty. Ofir your melody, you can't stop, you have to keep playing in peace, your soul will be bound in the bundle of life, I love you and miss you already."
Ofir's family on his coffin, photo: Herzi Shapira
Ofir's sister eulogized him and said: "I don't know how you didn't survive it for 54 days, I went from studio to studio and stage to stage because I thought I was fighting the right war, I wanted everyone to know how heroic you are and how loved you are, how loyal you are, you didn't dare abandon anyone, you took care of Golem and only in the end go and see the end Ofir.
"This is not our last conversation, be sure, but I want to say thank you for the privilege of being your sister for 27 years, Mila, you proudly taught me to accept everything with love and joy, you always saw the good in everyone, you never complained about anything, you didn't know this concept. We lost, we lost big, the whole world loses you. I will forever be left with a huge hole in my heart and I don't want him to heal either, I hope you will always be with us, I will look for you in every corner of the day.
"I'm sorry I didn't succeed in my mission to save you. I love you so much, my Ofir, my big brother, the person I love the most in the whole world, the best person in the world, you've always been there for me."
Efir's mother during the eulogy, photo: Herzi Shapira
Yaakov Peretz, mayor of Kiryat Ata, eulogized him: "The residents of Kiryat Ata all bow their heads in memory of Ophir, who wanted to celebrate his birthday surrounded by friends and music, and who died after being kidnapped by wrongdoers to the Gaza Strip.
"54 days in which his family, all citizens of Israel, have ranged from despair to hope, between pain and joy, clinging to every bit of information and praying for Ophir's return. During the period of uncertainty, Ofir Ogader came missing, the news of the injury and the announcement of the abduction to Gaza left a glimmer of hope. Every day that passed we hoped so much that we would see Ofir's name on the list of those released. We so wanted the Sarfati family to be able to reunite with their loved one and be whole again. We believed so much that another day only reinforces the fact that there is more hope."
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