(March 1, 2023 / JNS) Elan Ganeles’s funeral was held in Ra’anana on Wednesday afternoon, two days after terrorists shot him near the Beit Ha’arava Junction close to Jericho in the Jordan Valley.
“He was the biggest gift in our lives. He wanted so much to see the world and all its aspects,” said Elan’s mother, Carolyn, at the funeral.
“Our loss is a loss for the world—of such a bright, brilliant, emerging star,” she continued. “He was so loved, he will be missed so much. We feel like a part of our being has been taken from us.”
The gunmen fled the scene before at some stage setting their car on fire and continuing on foot into Jericho, which is under the control of the Palestinian Authority.
Ganeles, a native of Connecticut, served in the Israel Defense Forces from July 2016 to August 2018. He was living in Manhattan and had traveled to the Jewish state to celebrate a friend’s wedding.
His family flew in from the United States for the funeral.
Ganeles attended the Hebrew Academy in West Hartford and was a 2104 graduate of the Hebrew High School of New England, now part of the New England Jewish Academy. While a student at Columbia University, Ganeles worked as a geospatial analyst at the university’s Center for International Earth Science Information Network.
Ganeles’s murder came hours after brothers Hallel and Yagel Yaniv, slain by a Palestinian terrorist in Samaria the previous day, were buried on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem.
Hallel, 21, and Yagel, 19, were shot at point-blank range as they drove through the village of Huwara near where they lived.
Support
Jewish News Syndicate
With geographic, political and social divides growing wider, high-quality reporting and informed analysis are more important than ever to keep people connected.
Our ability to cover the most important issues in Israel and throughout the Jewish world—without the standard media bias—depends on the support of committed readers.
If you appreciate the value of our news service and recognize how JNS stands out among the competition, please click on the link and make a one-time or monthly contribution.
We appreciate your support.