NEW YORK POST
The mother of one of three hostages accidentally shot dead by Israeli troops delivered an astonishing message of love and forgiveness to the unit that killed him — while urging them to keep up the fight to wipe out Hamas.
Iris Haim sent a heartfelt message Wednesday to the Bislamach Brigade’s 17th Battalion, whose soldiers mistook her 28-year-old son Yotam along with Samer Talalka, 22, and Alon Shamriz, 26, for terrorists.
“I am Yotam’s mother. I wanted to tell you that I love you very much, and I hug you here from afar,” the grieving mom said, according to the Times of Israel.
“I know that everything that happened is absolutely not your fault, and nobody’s fault except that of Hamas, may their name be wiped out and their memory erased from the Earth,” Haim said in a recorded message.
“I want you to look after yourselves and to think all the time that you are doing the best thing in the world, the best thing that could happen, that could help us.
“Because all the people of Israel and all of us need you healthy,” she continued.
Haim urged the soldiers to continue acting decisively if they believed they faced terrorists.
“Don’t think that you killed a hostage deliberately. You have to look after yourselves because only that way can you look after us,” she said.
Haim also extended an invitation to the young men.
“At the first opportunity, you are invited to come to us, whoever wants to. And we want to see you with our own eyes and hug you and tell you that what you did — however hard it is to say this, and sad — it was apparently the right thing in that moment,” Haim said.
She stressed that no one would judge the soldiers for their actions or be angry with them.
“Not me and not my husband, Raviv. Not my daughter Noya. And not Yotam, may his memory be blessed. And not Tuval, Yotam’s brother.
“We love you very much. And that is all,” she said in conclusion.
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