The following is my speech on behalf of the Knesset at the memorial ceremony for the fallen soldiers of the Six-Day War and the War of Attrition.
Dear families, Honorable High Court Justice Uri Shoham, Commander of the IDF Ground Forces General Guy Tzur, honored guests:
With awe and trepidation, with a hidden tear and shaking knees, We stand here today Facing the glory of your bravery and the splendor of your triumph. And we salute you Our brothers, heroes of fame.
We will never know why, after 2,000 years, It was specifically you who were chosen by our Father in Heaven To be the silver platter upon which Jerusalem was served to us In the wondrous War of Miracles of Six Days And the War of Attrition that followed on its heels.
But this we will always know: When you were called to serve, You parted from your loved ones and ran with alacrity ahead of the camp. You left everything behind, and together you charged into the fire.
In Armon Hanatziv, Ammunition Hill, In the Alley of Death and the Police School, In the Canal, in the strongholds, in the Land of Pursuit:
You forged a covenant of brothers, you sacrificed your lives for each other. One hand held the other, and for a rare moment – too rare – you taught us The true meaning of oneness, Oneness at the front and oneness at home.
In the merit of one hand [yad] holding the other (numerical value 14+14) We merited the 28th That wondrous 28th of Iyar. As if our Father in Heaven was pleased and said that If my children are sacrificing their lives in extraordinary brotherly unity They are worthy that I should be their Father and I will transform the natural to supernatural.
And five pursued one hundred, and one hundred pursued ten thousand, And the enemy was smitten, and in six days you liberated our Holy Land. And when the walls of dispute of the heart fell, The wall of stone was broken – and Jerusalem was united. “The Temple Mount is in our hands,” called Motta [Gur]. “I repeat: the Temple Mount is in our hands.” And our flag was raised over the holy Mount.
And the sound of the shofar rang out…
And you are the teruah of the shofar. And you are the shevarim of the shofar. And you are always the great outcry.
Since then, we have become confused. We did not know how to clarify and continue The authentic, natural, united momentum of liberation. We did not know what to do with your gift. In the gap that has since widened between us, A wall has once again been built in Jerusalem. And again, we will look down and admit the truth: The city is very divided. We have dropped our flag, We have not really safeguarded The unity of our city Acquired with your blood.
And it is fitting and good that with awe and trepidation, With a hidden tear and shaking knees, We return every 28th and stand before you Every Iyar, every year. And we report back to you, And we will stand silent in the face of your judgment. What have we done this year to safeguard your gift, The unification of Jerusalem, the city of our Holy Temple, Jerusalem of Gold?
For which you were the silver platter,
Upon which it was served to us.
