Bereaved Sister Delivers Emotional Speech at National Return Ceremony to Ganim Settlement in Northern Samaria

At the National Return Ceremony to the Ganim settlement in northern Samaria on Thursday evening, Elena Keshet, sister of the late Keti Vintrov, gave a moving speech. Keti Vintrov was murdered in a 2001 shooting attack on the bypass road near Jenin while returning home to Ganim, leaving behind her three-year-old son Ariel who survived the attack. The family lived in Ganim, which was evacuated four years later during the disengagement plan.

Standing before families who have returned to Ganim, Keshet expressed deep emotion, calling the hills of Ganim and Kadim her home and emphasizing the heavy price her family paid. She recounted a poignant memory of Keti and her late husband Alex hiring a worker from Jenin to build a pergola, who ominously told them the structure would one day belong to him after they were gone. Keshet declared that this belief was a bitter historical mistake, affirming that while walls can be destroyed, the Zionist spirit, love for the land, and memory of those who sacrificed their lives cannot be uprooted.

Keshet shared her personal grief and longing for Keti and the settlement, but expressed hope and pride seeing new families restoring life to the hills. Following her speech, Shomron Regional Council head Yossi Dagan praised Keshet as an inspiration and promised to build a strong, thriving community in Ganim, affirming the enduring spirit of Keti and the settlers.

The ceremony marked exactly 21 years since the evacuation of Ganim during the disengagement. Thirty families have since re-established the settlement, which now also hosts a branch of the Bnei David Yeshiva in Eli. The event was attended by hundreds, including Defense Minister Israel Katz, Communications Minister Dr. Shlomo Karhi, Knesset member Yuli Edelstein, rabbis, and families from Ganim and the settler core.