Hundreds of people came Monday to accompany Sgt. Nehoray Leizer on his final journey to the military cemetery in Eilat.
His mother, Rotem, eulogized him. “My Nehoray, I thought about what to write. The words would not come. I said, whatever comes out, comes out. My life, my child, such a successful boy. A humble boy, with values. I am guilty. I am guilty of everything. I raised you to be the very best. This goes against the laws of nature. Where has anyone heard of this? A 19-year-old boy whose mother has to bury her son? I sent you healthy, whole and complete, and they returned you in a coffin," she said.
“A leader, someone people followed. How can I bury you?” she continued. “The last time, you said, ‘Mom, I’m sorry, they won’t release me. I’m in Lebanon. They need me.’ You tricked me. You left at 4 in the morning, you did everything to get home. And how happy you made me. You have no idea. I don’t know what I will do. God, give me strength.
“I have Dad here, May and Roi. Whiskey, the dog who was so attached to you, is sad. He doesn’t understand what is happening at home. We don’t understand what is happening to him," she said. "I knew something was going to happen to you. I knew. You knew too. Why did you go in? I love you with all my heart and promise that everywhere, people will hear about you. No one will forget my son. Everyone who received something from you will carry you on with pride. To all your friends in combat engineering, protect yourselves, come home safely to your parents, to your families. Please. We will love you forever.”
Nehoray’s girlfriend, Tevel Mittelman, paid tribute to the fallen soldier. “He was the person with the biggest heart. I can’t believe he is here inside the coffin. I was afraid to look at him. I prefer to remember him with the best smile. He was supposed to come back Thursday and spoke to me before. I’m a Border Police guard and I was on guard duty. I sent him a message saying the call was short and that I was waiting for him to call, and I sent him a picture. He wrote, ‘My beautiful girl, you are the most beautiful in the world.’ I felt something would happen to him. They told me, ‘Think good and it will be good.’ But inside, I knew. And he knew too," she said.
“You enlisted as a combat engineering soldier. You served with dedication, courage, a wide heart and a big smile. You acted with determination and out of love for people. You entered the hearts of those around you," said his battalion commander, Maj. Israel Hotovely. "The legacy and values on which you were raised, and which you instilled in those around you, drive us forward. No words can heal the great rupture and the pain. Nehoray, I salute you on your final journey. In your spirit, we will fight until victory.”
Leizer, a soldier in the 601st Combat Engineering Battalion, was killed by a Hezbollah explosives-laden drone while inside a Namer armored engineering vehicle in the village of Debel in southern Lebanon. He is the 11th soldier killed since the ceasefire in southern Lebanon and the 23rd since Operation Roaring Lion began.