Two soldiers killed in Gaza buried in J'lem, Beersheba

'My son died in vain,' Givati soldier's mother laments

By SHELLY PAZ
soldier_killed_dangur (photo credit: Courtesy)
soldier_killed_dangur
(photo credit: Courtesy)
"It is not good to die for any country, and Gaza is certainly not ours to die for. God, if there is one, please stop this madness." These words were spoken by Yoel Mizrahi during his eulogy for his nephew, St.-Sgt. Eran Dan-Gur, at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery in Jerusalem on Sunday. Dan-Gur, a Givati Brigade soldier from the capital, was killed in action in Jabalya, the northern Gaza Strip, early on Saturday morning. "Eran, you are a third generation of Israeli patriotism. Only 20 years old... None of us expected such bloody patriotism, and we didn't expect your and your friends' blood to be abandoned and that young men like yourself would be sent to Gaza to a dire fate known in advance. The prime minister and the defense minister stutter just as they did during the Second Lebanon War, and the answers are our children returning home in coffins," Mizrahi said. "Eran, there are no words big enough to describe our loss. My dear one, I salute you and thank you for letting us be part of your world and of your short life," Mizrahi said. Eran's mother, Merri, said her son had died in vain. "If Eran's death could have stopped the rockets, I would have been prepared to make this sacrifice," she told Channel 2. "But that's not the case. Eran died for nothing." Hundreds of friends, relatives and soldiers attended Dan-Gur's funeral. Dan-Gur, from Jerusalem's Gilo neighborhood, joined the Givati's Shaked infantry battalion in August 2006. He died Saturday, during an operation aimed at destroying Kassam rockets and launchers. "God, I am angry with you. I never gave you permission to take my son from me. Please, bring him back to me," said his mother as she wept over her son's coffin while his friends carried it. "How did they send you to Gaza? ... On foot, exposed, and you were killed by a single bullet." Dan-Gur's aunt said, "I dreamed of the day I would make you laugh at your wedding, but instead I am here, at your funeral." His unit commander said, "Dan-Gur family, you have lost your son, and we in the Givati Brigade have lost a soldier, a friend and a human being. "While the nation of Israel slept, Eran and his friends in the Shaked Battalion went to thwart the terror infrastructure inside Gaza. Eran, you fought to leave the training unit and to return to be a combat soldier alongside your friends in the brigade, who continue in these moments to fight in Gaza to bring peace and quiet to the citizens of Israel. You were an excellent soldier and a caring person. I salute you on your last voyage," the unit commander said. Dan-Gur's friends from the Gilo Comprehensive High School described him as happy and intelligent. "We have no words to describe our feelings. It's hard to believe we won't see you again except in photos. On the one hand, you were a person who loved life and knew how to live it to the fullest, and on the other hand you were an outstanding student who didn't need to work too hard to get good grades," Erez said. "You fought and got everything you wanted, but from now on, nothing will be the same. We never thought this could happen to one of us, but it did," said Hadas. "Dear Liron, we know that only thanks to you Eran knew what love is, and for that you are our friend, and we will be there for you and for Eran's family, whose sorrow is ours for eternity," Eran's friend Omer said to Dan-Gur's girlfriend, Liron. Dan-Gur is survived by his parents, Merri and Reuven, and two brothers, Guy, 14, and Nadav, 17.