‘He was full of love’: Family and friends mourn fallen IDF soldier

Hundreds were present at the cemetery in the Elyakim moshav near Yokne’am on Thursday for the funeral of St.-Sgt. Omer Tabib, who was killed yesterday by an anti-tank missile fired by Hamas from the Gaza Strip into Israel. Tabib was a soldier in the Nahal Brigade’s 931 battalion. “He was full of love and calm,” Tabib’s mother, Tali, said. “He loved and was loved by people.””He was full of happiness and he respected everyone around him, always ready to lend a hand when needed.””My son, you were caring and sensitive, always knowing what the right thing to say was.””My beautiful boy, give us the strength to continue, make me hope that I didn’t make any mistakes along the way, that I didn’t hurt or disappoint you. I tried, and if I made a mistake, I apologize. I love you so much, forever, my son,” she concluded. “These people from Gaza, as well as from inside our country, want to destroy us,” said Gamliel Ratzon, a family friend. “They were successful this time, but they won’t be for long.”

“We have a strong army that will make these murderers hurt,” he said. “I demand revenge, revenge that eliminates thousands of [members of Palestinian Islamic] Jihad and Hamas, because those are the only terms they understand.””A terrible tragedy landed on us yesterday, like a lighting bold on a bright day,” Megiddo Regional Council head Itzik Holevsky said. “We will continue to fight the enemies of our state.” A friend of the family, Avital, asked Tabib to watch over them from above, and added, “we will keep them safe over here.” Tabib was an alum of Megiddo high school and the Bnei Akiva youth movement. He was supposed to be released from the IDF in a matter of weeks. “It’s hard to speak about him in past tense,” said one of Tabib’s friends, “he was so friendly and open and generous.” According to the IDF Spokesperson, Tabib’s battalion was tasked with securing Israeli towns near the border. He entered one, and was killed by an anti-tank missile. In response, the IDF targeted four senior Hamas officials in the Strip.
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