‘They took my flower’: Families mourn two soldiers killed near Hebron as IDF braces for escalation

The IDF is still investigating the deadly shooting attack near Hebron in which Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem were killed. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who visited the scene, said that "the outcome of the confrontation with the terrorist cell is painful, but the initial investigation indicates that the force's actions prevented a serious attack against Israeli civilians." Zamir vowed to pursue and apprehend everyone involved in the attack. He said the IDF had already been preparing for a possible escalation in the West Bank before Friday's shooting. "We reinforced our forces and deployed the headquarters of the 98th Division and many additional troops to the area. Our forces' operations in the region have prevented and thwarted many attacks recently," he said. Ahead of next week's election, Zamir stressed that the entire defense establishment was "at the highest level of preparedness and alert across all fronts." "Our foremost mission is to thwart terrorism and ensure security and stability for Israel's citizens. We will continue to strike and take the initiative wherever necessary, and we will act with a cool head. We will not be dragged into action or allow our enemies to influence us, especially given the sensitive week ahead. We will also investigate this attack to learn lessons for the future," Zamir said. The IDF chief expressed his condolences to the families of the two fallen soldiers, who were the first fatalities suffered by the Home Front Command's Ari Battalion. The battalion was established over the past year to increase the number of combat troops available for different operational sectors, while providing additional forces for missions on the home front. Ari is the fifth battalion of the Home Front Command's Rescue Brigade. Roytman and Svilem were its first fallen soldiers, and their families are struggling to comprehend the loss. ‘I heard about the attack on the radio. Our home has been destroyed’ In the yard of Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem's family home, a stereo system sits covered in plastic. His father, Amnon, looks at it with tears in his eyes and tells ynet: "It was a regular ritual. Every Saturday evening, after Havdalah, he would play music on it. But that's it. There won't be any more music in this house. Our home has been destroyed." Yuval's friends and family describe him as one of the kindest people they knew, gentle and friendly toward everyone. "This is a boy who, even now, was still in touch with the babysitter who looked after him when he was three years old. Whenever he came home, he would bring her flowers for Shabbat. And now they've taken my flower," his father said painfully. Yuval was the eldest of three children. He is survived by his father Amnon, mother Sivan, sister Shira and brother Itamar. "He was a good kid, an angel, always helping and smiling. He went to school here in Hod Hasharon and later graduated successfully from the Torah and Science religious high school in Kfar Saba, where he even earned a two-star diving qualification. That's who he was. He was always ambitious. He also studied biology and wanted to learn about investments later on." "He was quiet, a homebody, a good kid. He loved going to work and the gym. He always gravitated toward the quiet, good kids, not the troublemakers. He helped everyone. I wanted him to join the Navy, but he wanted to be a combat soldier. He trained extensively for the selection process because he always wanted to be the best." His parents received the devastating news Friday afternoon when military representatives knocked on their door. Since then, their garden has filled with friends and relatives. "I heard about the attack on the radio," Amnon recalled. "I was driving, and they mentioned the battalion. I knew it was his battalion. I tried calling him, but he was unavailable. I called and called, and he didn't answer. Eventually I called my wife and told her, 'The boy isn't answering. Maybe he'll answer you.' She tried too, and then they came and knocked on the door." For now, Amnon says he has no complaints against the IDF, although he wants to understand what happened during the prolonged exchange of fire in which his son was killed. "We still haven't received the investigation findings, and we want to know what happened." He made just one request to the military representatives who visited his home: "I told them I want to be the last person who ever has to hear the words 'cleared for publication.' My eldest son is gone, and my home has been destroyed." But Amnon had a different message for Israel's political leadership. "I'm not looking for blood revenge, but I want this to stop. If terrorists take the law into their own hands, the state must make them understand that there are consequences for their actions. It cannot be that they simply demolish their homes while their families remain here and receive money from Hamas or the Palestinian Authority. Their entire immediate families should be expelled from the country, so the next terrorist knows there are consequences for what he does. Not just for him, but for his family too. I'm not looking for blood revenge. We want to stop the bloodshed." "They took the most precious thing in the world from me. The entire family has been hurt, and they need to take into account that their families will be hurt too. Enough of this bargaining. They'll become martyrs, they'll be glorified, their families will be rewarded, and we'll be left destroyed. Time will pass, but a family never forgets. For us, there are no more holidays or Shabbat. Why should they have them?" Ron's fight to serve in combat: ‘He dreamed of it’ David Roytman, Ron's brother, told ynet: "He was a star. He was loved everywhere he went. People always say things like that about someone who has fallen, but he really was always number one." According to David, Ron fought to become a combat soldier. "He wasn't supposed to enlist as a combat soldier at all. He spent a year volunteering with at-risk youth and suffered an injury while playing soccer. They told him there was no chance he would become a combat soldier. And he said, 'That's not going to happen.'" David said his brother went to extraordinary lengths to achieve his goal. "He went through everyone, from junior officers all the way to the chief medical officer, and he made it into combat service. He became a commander of new recruits and went up to the battalion with them. He always dreamed about it and wanted it. He took every opportunity to serve in the dangerous areas of the West Bank. That's what he pushed for." David himself served in the Combat Engineering Corps, while their older sister served in the Caracal Battalion. "We're all a family of combat soldiers," he said. Ron attended the Kadoorie Youth Village boarding school in northern Israel. "He was someone who had a real zest for life, someone who loved living. He was my best friend," David concluded. Staff Sergeant Roytman will be laid to rest Sunday at 11 a.m. at the military cemetery in Ashkelon. More than 20 minutes of gunfire The two Hamas-affiliated terrorists behind the attack were Palestinian relatives. Hamouda Wael Mohammed Jaaba and Fares Samir Mohammed Jaaba arrived at the scene, got out of their vehicle and opened fire. The fighting continued for more than 20 minutes, during which additional forces arrived, including the deputy commander of the Ari Battalion and a company commander. The soldiers maneuvered around the terrorists and killed them. A search of the terrorists' vehicle uncovered a large quantity of ammunition. The assessment is that they intended to carry out a major attack against civilians and planned to reach the main roads before continuing toward populated areas deeper inside Israel. However, investigators are still examining whether the cell was directed by an outside organization or whether the attack was initiated independently by the terrorists. Because both terrorists were killed, the investigation is continuing in an effort to determine their intended destination. The IDF spokesperson confirmed that the three other people wounded in the attack were also soldiers. All three sustained minor injuries, and their families have been notified. Ofer Ohana, a medic who arrived Friday morning at the scene of the attack at Yehuda Junction on Route 35, managed to document the gunfire while under live fire himself. "The terrorist keeps shooting," he can be heard shouting. "There is still an exchange of fire between the terrorist and our forces. We can't get the wounded out. There's been active gunfire for more than 20 minutes." Following the attack, Israeli forces imposed a closure on Hebron and the nearby town of Halhul, prohibiting entry to and exit from both locations. At the same time, the military implemented a security procedure known as "Gray Bolt" throughout Central Command, under which Palestinian vehicles approaching main roads are checked. The heightened measures were also implemented in the Jenin, Nablus and Jericho sectors as part of efforts to prevent further attacks. Security forces began extensive searches, engineering operations and preparations to map the homes of the two terrorists, both 27, from Hebron. The men belonged to the same extended family and lived near one another. Investigators are expected to arrest individuals connected to them and examine possible links between the terrorists and additional suspects.