Hundreds of mourners on Wednesday attended the funeral of Raziel Shevach, a resident of the Samaria outpost of Havat Gilad who was murdered in a shooting attack near his home Tuesday.
Shevach was survived by his wife and six children, the youngest of whom is only 8 months old. His widow, Yael, wept incessantly, flanked by her friends who did not move from her side.
Shevach was buried in a freshly designated cemetery, established especially for his funeral.
Standing over the grave, Shevach's brother Barel eulogized him, saying "Raziel, my righteous brother, we never imagined that we would have to stand here and mourn you just as you reached your peak. You wanted to continue building your family, raising your children and getting to see grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You wanted to continue growing in your study of Torah and in your faith. You wanted to continue to shine onto your surroundings with your vitality and joie de vivre, which was always evident on your face.
"You wanted to see Havat Gilad, which you loved and where you settled your family, evolve, blossom and prosper," Barel continued in tears. "But a cursed, lowlife terrorist got in the way of your aspirations.
"You were kept from realizing your hopes but your values will live on and your aspirations are the aspirations of the entire nation. We, Yael, your wife, your precious children Renana, Naomi, Miriam, Milcah, Ovadia and Benayahu, Mom and Dad, and everyone who cherishes you, we will continue to be guided by your values – the values of the entire Jewish nation. You finished your work here on this earth, but we will carry on. Rest in peace, righteous brother. We, as a family, will do everything in our power to support Yael and the kids, and mom and dad," his brother said.
Friends, rabbis and cabinet ministers also eulogized the beloved father of six.
"We are at war and you are a victim of war," said Samaria Regional Council Chief Rabbi Elyakim Levanon. "This is a war between the sons of darkness and the sons of light. To anyone looking for a sign of light, you, Raziel, are the sign.
"Your whole life, you worked to make things better. You brought blessings and joy to friends, to your children, to children in general, and to your wife Yael. You blessed the people of Israel and you were meant to deliver a much higher blessing. There was so much joy in you. So much light. And there is so much darkness in those sons of darkness that came to extinguish the light. They came, and this time they succeeded – a big light was extinguished," Levanon said.
"The government of Israel must rise up against its enemies," he added.
Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, said in his eulogy that "despicable, sickening murderers, the scourge of the human race, stole a giant soul from us. Rabbi Raziel did not die of cancer, he didn't succumb to influenza. He was murdered because he was a Jew living in the land of Israel."
Dagan urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman to retroactively recognize Havat Gilad in response to Shevach's murder. Currently, the outpost, which numbers about 100 residents, is classified as illegal, as it is situated on land that the Palestinians claim as part of a future Palestinian state. Dagan also called for more housing permits in the area.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett also spoke at the funeral, saying "you were a beacon, in Havat Gilad."
Bennett's eulogy, which also included calls to legalize the outpost and step up construction, was interrupted by chants of "revenge" and "we want blood." Bennett reacted to the calls, saying, "I hear the pain and I understand the pain. But we won't draw our personal guns – we have a state here. The best response is to build here in our country."
Shortly before the funeral, Bennett visited the Shevach family to offer his condolences. Shevach's widow said to him, "You have no idea what we've lost. You don't know what kind of man he was."
Netanyahu said Wednesday that "I spoke with the Shin Bet security agency director and he has briefed me on the intensive investigation into the murderous attack. I have no doubt that it is just a matter of time, not a lot of time, I hope, before we apprehend the culprits. We are committed to this."
