Yotam Ovadia, a resident of Adam who was murdered in a terrorist stabbing attack Thursday night, was laid to rest in Jerusalem on Friday. Thousands arrived to pay their final respects to the slain father of two.
Ovadia, 31, who served in the Border Police, has worked for the Brink's security company for the past 10 years. He is survived by his wife, Tal Tahel, and two young children – Harel, 2, and 7-month-old Itai.
Yaakov Ovadia, the victim's uncle, said that everyone in the settlement of Adam knew Ovadia's family. "The extended family will support [them] and help as much as possible," he said.
At the funeral, Ovadia's grandmother eulogized him, saying that "our flower has been taken."
Rabbi Gur Levy, the chief rabbi of Adam, said that "Yotam was killed while sanctifying God. He left his house to perform a mitzvah and was murdered. We were slapped in the face. The Creator of the universe dealt us a serious blow. He will avenge your blood."
Tourism Minister Yariv Levin also eulogized Ovadia, saying, "It is unimaginable."
"We are hurting and suffering together will all of society. Your life was taken for one reason only – because you are a Jew. They told me you were murdered on your way to prepare a meal for Tal on Tu B'Av. You were murdered in the midst of a loving gesture," Levin said.
"The despicable terrorist will not achieve his goal. We will continue to build the land as we promised our forefathers," he added.
Deputy Defense Minister Eli Ben Dahan also attended the funeral, where he said that Yotam "was murdered just because he was a Jew. The Palestinian Authority is not the answer – it is the problem. It raised a 17-year-old child to kill children. The entire system teaches them that anyone who kills Jews is a martyr."
Oren Edry, Ovadia's brother-in-law, remarked that the "family is devastated."
"The cursed terrorist go him while he was out getting groceries for a romantic dinner he was planning for Tu B'Av. He was going to surprise my sister. He went to his parents' house, three houses down, and that's where the terrorist got him," he said.
Intelligence Services Minister Yisrael Katz on Friday extended his condolences to the Ovadia family and praised the Adam resident who shot and killed the terrorist.
"I congratulate the citizen who was attacked and stayed alert, taking down the terrorist, preventing the attack from continuing," Katz said.
The minister called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to promote his bill to deport families of terrorists as a method of deterrence against lone wolf attacks.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Twitter: "The best response to terrorism is the expansion of Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria, and this morning [Friday] I issued instructions to fast-track the construction of 400 housing units in Adam and have them approved by the relevant authorities in the coming weeks."
