The parents of Staff Sgt. Ofri Yafe, who was killed in Gaza, said Wednesday afternoon, “We are angry with the state, which is placing the best of our sons, the salt of the earth, in illogical and unnecessary situations after all our hostages have returned home.”
His parents, Hadas and Yiftach, said, “Our Ofri was a magical child, a yellow chick full of light. He devoured life every single moment. He loved his family, his friends from the moshav, his friends from his service year and his teammates in the reconnaissance unit. He gave of himself completely, always the first to volunteer and give without asking for anything in return.”
Ofri was killed overnight by IDF fire due to a case of mistaken identity. “We have no anger toward the army,” his parents stressed, directing their criticism at government policy. “We love everyone and embrace everyone.”
His mother, Hadas, said, “We had the great privilege of being his parents. His motto was ‘Live life,’ and he did that in 21 years. He was a person of abundance, generosity and kindness. He had many friends. He had a girlfriend for five years, and she is broken now. We want to believe and hope that he is the last fallen soldier. It is important for us to clarify that we are in no way angry with the sniper who fired. We take a small measure of comfort in having donated his organs. Maybe he will improve someone else’s quality of life or save someone from death.”
Family friend Idit Hadida added, “He was raised on values of giving. That was who he was. A beautiful child inside and out. I can’t believe he is gone, that we are speaking about him in the past tense. The news this morning was very hard, but the family is noble and realistic. They understand the circumstances and feel no anger toward the army or the soldiers. They are inviting them to come so they can embrace them, so that whoever fired will not live with the feeling that he is guilty.”
A preliminary investigation found that the soldier was hit by small-arms fire from IDF forces engaged in engineering operations to demolish structures. The incident in the Paratroopers Brigade, whose troops arrived in the area about a week ago, occurred during nighttime activity in eastern Khan Younis, in the buffer zone near the border.
During the October 7, attack, Ofri was preparing to enlist in the IDF after completing a year of national service at the Ayanot Youth Village, a residential educational community for teens. The following day, he posted on Facebook alongside his phone number: “My name is Ofri Yafe, and I finished a service year at Ayanot Youth Village a few months ago. Several friends and I are ready to come and help with anything needed, anywhere in the country that is safe to reach.”
After news of his death, his family said, “We are shocked by the disaster and cannot process the loss of our beloved son Ofri. It is unimaginable.”
The community of Moshav Hayogev said, “With deep sorrow and broken hearts, we bow our heads over the fall of our son Ofri Yafe. The entire Hayogev community is shocked and grieving this heavy loss. We embrace the Yafe family in their most difficult moments and will stand by them in whatever is needed.”