Bereaved Father Tells IDF Officers in Poland: 'You Are Our Answer to Auschwitz'
Translated & summarized from Arutz Sheva by baba
Yehoshua Shani, father of fallen soldier Uri Mordechai Shani, told IDF officers and soldiers on a trip to Poland that they represent the Jewish people's answer to the Holocaust and the October 7th attacks. He urged them to be worthy of the sacrifices of fallen soldiers and to ensure Israel remains strong and united. Shani connected the current struggle to the broader Jewish historical narrative, emphasizing that unlike Holocaust victims, Israeli soldiers fall while fighting to protect the nation. The journey included visits to Auschwitz-Birkenau and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Bereaved father Yehoshua Shani told IDF officers in Poland they are the answer to Auschwitz.
- Shani stated the IDF soldiers represent the Jewish people's answer to the October 7th attacks.
- He urged participants to be worthy of fallen soldiers' sacrifices and ensure Israel's strength.
- Uri Mordechai Shani, a Golani commander, fell fighting Hamas terrorists on October 7th.
- The journey included visits to Auschwitz-Birkenau and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron.
Yehoshua Shani, father of fallen IDF Captain Uri Mordechai Shani, addressed officers and soldiers participating in the "Witnesses in Uniform" journey in Poland. He urged them to be worthy of the sacrifices made by fallen soldiers, stating, "We will carry the memory of our sons not as a burden that bends our backs, but as a mission that straightens our stature."
Shani posed a rhetorical question to the participants: "What would a Jew who marched to his death in the extermination camps say today if he saw us standing here?" He envisioned the response: "If he saw IDF officers, in uniform, wrapped in the Israeli flag, standing tall on this land? I am certain he would say three words: Am Yisrael Chai!" (The people of Israel live).
He emphasized that the Jewish story did not begin with the Holocaust, nor with Israel's establishment in 1948, nor with the October 7th attacks, but stretches back to Abraham. Shani connected his son Uri's story to this broader historical narrative. Uri, a Golani Brigade platoon commander, fell fighting Hamas terrorists near Kissufim on Simchat Torah after a nine-hour battle.
Shani contrasted the Holocaust victims, who were murdered defenseless, with Israeli soldiers who fall in battle bearing arms to ensure the nation is never again defenseless. "Hatred of Israel has not disappeared. But what has changed is that we are no longer helpless," he stated.
He called on the participants to bear the responsibility left by the fallen, urging them to be a strong, united people, confident in their path, and not to entrust their fate to others. "You are our answer to Auschwitz. You are our answer to October 7th. And you are our promise to future generations," he concluded, addressing the uniformed personnel directly.
Upon his return to Israel on Friday, Shani shared a video from the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron with his fellow travelers, having previously stood with them at Auschwitz-Birkenau. He described the journey as a connection between past and future, stating, "We are not only witnesses to the past, we carry the responsibility for the future on our shoulders."