Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday night paid a condolence visit to the family of Sgt. 1st Class (res.) Omer Smadga, who fell in combat in the Gaza Strip on Thursday.
Smadga, 25, from Ganot Hadar, and Sgt. 1st Class (res.) Saadia Yaakov Dery, 27, from Tel Aviv, were killed by a Hamas mortar in the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza.
The prime minister heard from Omer’s parents, Oren and Liat, about their eldest son’s special character and his military service.
“We have been exposed as an unbelievable generation—the values, the strength within people. This dedication, seeing the job through—this is the Israeli spirit. The people are in favor of finishing the job,” Oren Smagda told the premier.
Omer Smadga died on the 54th birthday of his father, the first Israeli man to win an Olympic medal, having taken a bronze in judo in the 1992 Summer Olympics.
Netanyahu told the Smagdas that their son was a hero, and that heroes like him would win the campaign against Hamas, which he vowed to continue until victory.
