Watan-Israeli Finance Minister Avigdor Smotrich revealed that the officer killed, with the rank of major in the commando forces, announced by the occupying army to have been killed on Saturday evening in battles in the Gaza Strip, was his cousin, saying, “We grew up together, and the loss is indescribable.”
The Israeli army said in a brief statement: “On Friday, March 8th, Major Amishar Ben David was killed in battles in the southern Gaza Strip.”
בן דודי היקר, עמישר, גיבור ישראל נפל בקרב בעזה.
גדלנו יחד.
מעט יחסית בני דודים עם קשר חזק ומיוחד.
“שנר” קראנו לו.
חופשים, שבתות, טיולים, שמחות.
איזה איש. איזה כאב. אין מילים.על האש משותף בקיץ האחרון. מי חלם שזו תהיה התמונה האחרונה.
איש משפחה אהוב. pic.twitter.com/yHR2TuElwr
— בצלאל סמוטריץ’ (@bezalelsm) March 9, 2024
The statement added: “Ben David, 43, held the position of commander of the commando training corps.”
Smotrich mourns his cousin
The extremist minister, Smotrich, wrote on his Twitter account, posting a picture of himself with the slain officer: “My dear cousin, Amishar, an Israeli hero fell in a battle in Gaza… We grew up together (…) What a wonderful person he was. What a deep pain. There are no words.”
He continued: “Who would have dreamed that this would be the last picture.”
The occupying army officially admitted to the killing of 588 officers and soldiers since October 7th, including 248 killed in ground battles inside the Gaza Strip.