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STATEMENT FROM THE JEWISH COMMUNITY RELATIONS COUNCIL ON THE OCCASION OF THE RETURN OF THE BODIES OF EHUD GOLDWASSER AND ELDAD REGEV
ST. LOUIS COMMUNITY EXPRESSES SOLIDARITY WITH ISRAEL AS BODIES OF ABDUCTED IDF SOLDIERS RETURNED
ST. LOUIS July 16, 2008 – The Jewish community of St. Louis stands in solidarity with the Israeli people as Israel Defense Force soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev are remembered as heroes who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the Jewish state. The soldiers were abducted by Hezbollah terrorists from sovereign Israeli territory on July 12, 2006 and subsequently murdered.
Leonard Frankel, President of the Jewish Community Relations Council, released the following statement:
“The Jewish Community of St. Louis stands in solidarity with the families of the murdered soldiers and the entire state of Israel. We join them in mourning for these two young heroes who died defending the Jewish state from terror.
The negotiations to return the captives’ bodies to Israel were difficult and painful. They were also an expression of Israel’s deep reverence for human life and of its respect for the fallen soldiers.
Until all of Israel’s captive soldiers—Guy Hever, Zachary Baumel, Tzvi Feldman, Yehuda Katz, Ron Arad, Majdy Halabi, and Gilad Shalit are accounted for, efforts must not cease to secure their return.”
WE MUST NOT FORGET THE KIDNAPPED ISRAELI SOLDIERS
Background
On June 26, 2006, Palestinian terrorists tunneled under the border fence within Israel’s pre-1967 borders and attacked an Israeli military installation near Kibbutz Kerem Shalom. Two Israeli soldiers were killed, three wounded and Gilad Shalit was abducted. Two and a half weeks later, eight IDF soldiers were killed and Ehud (Udi) Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were kidnapped on the border with Lebanon,in an attackby the Iranian and Syrian-backed terror group, Hezbollah.
On July 16, 2007 thousands of people gathered in New York in front of the United Nations to demand the release of the Israeli hostages. A petition demanding the release of the Israeli captives, signed by over 50,000 people, including signatures by St. Louisans, was delivered to the UN.
The St. Louis community gathered on July 30, 2007 to stand in solidarity with Israel and to demand the release of the three captives and the other Israeli MIAs.
On July 16, 2008, the bodies of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were returned to Israel. See JCRC Statement above.
About the soldiers
Ehud (Udi) Goldwasser, 31, was born in Nahariya, and was the son of Miki and Shlomo and older brother of Yair (26) and Gadi (23). After dating for nine years, he and his wife Karnit were married less than a year ago. Udi completed his undergraduate studies at the Technion (Israel Institute of Technology) and was a graduate student in environmental engineering. Udi was a kind, loving and caring person; always ready to offer a helping hand in any situation.
Eldad Regev, 26, was born and raised in Kiryat Motzkin. He was the son of Tova (of blessed memory) and Zvi, and brother of Benny, Ofer and Eyal. After completing three years of military service in the elite Givati infantry brigade, he became a law student at Bar Ilan University with the hopes of becoming a law professor. Eldad was loved by and immensely popular among all who knew him. Eldad was called up for military reserve duty after completing his exams at Bar Ilan University.
Gilad Shalit, 21, was born in Nahariya but was raised in Mitzpe Hilla in the Western Galilee. He is the son of Aviva and Noam and brother of Yoel (23) and Hadas (16). He follows sports teams and tournaments all over the world, from tennis to basketball and cycling. Gilad is a well-mannered, quiet and soft-spoken young man, with a smile that lights up his face. Gilad began his military service in July 2005. He followed his older brother Yoel into the armed forces and despite being able to avoid combat due to medical reasons, he preferred to serve in a combat unit. Prior to his abduction, he had been on duty guarding the settlements around Gaza.
Click here to read more about the captives
To Learn More
- Visit the websites for the captive soldiers: www.freethesoldiers.org and Israel MFA
- Educate friends, family members and others about all of the missing Israeli soldiers and encourage them to take action
Zachary Baumel, Tzvi Feldman and Yehudah Katz - missing since June 11, 1982; Ron Arad – missing since October 16, 1986; Guy Hever - missing since August 17, 1997; Gilad Shalit – missing since June 25, 2006. To learn more about their stories go to: www.freethesoldiers.org and www.mia.org.il
Pray for the captives’ release
A prayer for the safety of the kidnapped soldiers can be downloaded here
JCRC Meeting with American Red Cross
The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) leadership met with leadership of the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter to share the concern of the St. Louis Jewish community for the fate of the kidnapped soldiers, Eldad Regev, Udi Goldwasser and Gilad Shalit, and to receive a briefing on the efforts of the Red Cross to establish contact with them.
Meeting participants: Joe Pereles, member of the Board of Governors of the American Red Cross; Rabbi Stiffman Chair of the JCRC Israel Advocacy Committee; Terry Bloomberg, JCRC President; Batya Abramson-Goldstein, JCRC Executive Director; and Joe White, Executive Director of the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter.
 
Joe Pereles, member of the Board of Governors of the American Red Cross, giving JCRC leadership a briefing on the situation of the kidnapped soldiers. |
Rabbi Stiffman chair of the JCRC Israel Advocacy Committee, giving the dog tags of the kidnapped soldiers to Joe Pereles, member of the Board of Governors of the American Red Cross |
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