In a letter sent to President Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Gadi Eizenkott, seniors from Yishuv Ofra about to enter the IDF relate to the case of veteran Yehuda HaYisraeli.

HaYisraeli was seriously injured in Operation Protective Edge and is now permitted to return home after a long painful rehabilitation progress, ready to face his new life with its challenges as a disabled veteran with physical limitations. When the Defense Ministry was asked to pay for the modification of the family home as is the norm, the family was told the homes in Ofra are illegal and therefore, the government cannot participate in funding the renovations to make the home accessible for the disabled veteran. This compelled the family to make an appeal to raise the funds on their own, an appeal that was met with unprecedented generosity by Israelis. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu then instructed Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman to do what he can, obviously embarrassed over the events.

The soon-to-be soldiers used their letter to document the injustice and their fears of what might occur in the future if they face a similar plight. They question if one of them is killed in the line of duty if the IDF will permit them to be buried in their home community of Ofra.

The graduates decided to take the initiative and join the fight for their homes and the homeland, stating, “We ask you in to please permit one to live normally in the community in which one grew up and educated to love the Torah, People and the land, and to permit one to receive treatment if necessary, including a fitting place of burial of required chas v’sholom”.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)