Smadar Mor Idan: A lioness of a mother, a trusted confidante with a heart devoted to giving
Smadar Mor Idan was born and raised in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, a place she never truly left. Her mother, Shlomit Mor, remembers her as “a very, very easy child. Lovely, good, kindhearted.” Her sister, Liron, recalls with a smile that as the youngest child in the family, she had not necessarily wanted another sister in the house, but “very quickly, we all fell in love with her.”
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Childhood friends describe a girl who was an inseparable part of “the group” from Kfar Aza and nearby Nir Am. Lital Rosenfeld-Dishon remembers how their lives had been intertwined since infancy and how Smadar helped her through school. “I passed my Arabic matriculation exam because of her,” she says. Dafna Siboni adds that they were “pretty nerdy girls, but good kids.”
A secret mission and an open heart
Smadar’s professional life was marked by a deep sense of purpose. She served in the IDF’s Unit 8200, went on to earn degrees in Middle Eastern studies and later worked in a national security-related position at the Justice Ministry.
Despite the demanding and classified nature of her work, Smadar remained modest and rigorously discreet.“She was very secretive. ... She wouldn’t tell us anything,” a friend recalls.
Her sister Liron points to the striking contrast between Smadar, who “didn’t understand anything about her own phone,” and the woman they later learned was a highly regarded expert in her field. Smadar would tell her family: “It’s a job where only I can do what I do, and I have to show up.”
Her life with Roy and her total devotion to motherhood
Smadar met the love of her life, Roy, while working at the kibbutz gas station when he was serving at Nahal Oz. Her mother describes a relationship built on mutual respect and the freedom to pursue their dreams. As a partner, Smadar was described by a friend as “supportive, accepting, loving and giving.”
Above all, Smadar was “a lioness of a mother.” Despite the intensity of her career, she never missed the important moments in her children’s lives. “She came to every birthday at kindergarten, every end-of-year celebration and played soccer in parent-child games with her son Michael.” She knew how to make the most of every free moment so she could give her children everything she had.
“It just doesn’t make sense”
News of Smadar’s death left her friends and family in shock. “There is something about Smadar and the way she died that just doesn’t make sense to me,” one friend says. “She was so full of life. Such a good person, such an incredible person, loved by everyone. Somehow, the thought of it just didn’t make sense to me.”
Her sister Liron says through tears: “She is missed. Her absence is felt everywhere in our lives. Two weeks ago, I had her tattooed on me so she would always be close.”
“Smadar and Roee didn’t leave a will, but one of her friends came to us and told me that she and Smadar had once had a conversation about what would happen if something happened to her. Just a random conversation. Smadar told her, ‘I know Liron will take them,’” she says, referring to the children.
“So there was no arguing with that. The children were the ones who brought it to our doorstep. It is an incredible thing, with all the difficulty that comes with it. It is incredible that I have them with me.”
Smadar Mor Idan was murdered on Oct. 7, 2023, at the age of 38. She is survived by three children, her parents and three siblings.
May her memory be a blessing.
Smadar Mor Idan