He was murdered in a terrorist shooting on Sunday morning at the Ein Raya spring, where he had gone with his eldest son, Yoav, 16, to immerse ahead of Yom Kippur.
By Natan Galula, JNS
Hundreds of mourners attended the funeral of Israeli terror victim Netanel Shakron, who was buried near his home in Samaria shortly after midnight on Tuesday.
Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, head of the Israel Defense Forces’ Central Command, and Brig. Gen. Kobi Heller, commander of the IDF’s Judea and Samaria Division, attended the funeral, Ynet reported.
Shakron lived in the Israeli community of Alei Zahav. He was murdered in a terrorist shooting on Sunday morning at the Ein Raya spring, where he had gone with his eldest son, Yoav, 16, to immerse ahead of Yom Kippur.
“The Shakron family is a longstanding family with deep roots in the community and an inseparable part of Alei Zahav,” a community representative said in a statement.
“We are all embracing Merav and the children and will stand by them during this difficult time and in whatever they may need,” the statement said. “May his memory be a blessing.”
‘You are a true hero’
His son later recounted the horrifying moment when the terrorist opened fire at his father.
“We arrived at the spring ahead of Yom Kippur, immersed in the water, and then went back up to the parking lot,” Yoav Shakron related in Hebrew, speaking on Tuesday with Israel’s Kan public radio station.
“We got into the car. Dad sat in the back seat and dried himself off, while I sat in the passenger seat next to the driver. Suddenly he shouted at me, ‘Yoav, there’s a terrorist here,’ or ‘Yoav, this is a terror attack,’ something along the lines of ‘run.’ I didn’t realize there was an attack until he shouted. I turned my head and saw the terrorist actually shooting at Dad,” he said.
“The terrorist came from my side. He was a few centimeters away from me, but he didn’t shoot at me immediately; instead, he opened fire at Dad. At that point, I moved between the seats to the driver’s side, opened the door, and ran. The terrorist continued shooting at me as I ran to hide among the bushes on the other side of the road,” Yoav continued.
The teenager hid in the bushes until a military vehicle arrived at the scene.
“After the soldiers fired several shots, I went back to the car. About two minutes had passed. I saw Dad lying there inside the vehicle, and I immediately understood from his injuries that he was gone,” he added.
Yom Kippur was “very difficult and special. Suddenly you understand the true meaning of the Day of Judgment,” said Yoav.
He related that he had a very good relationship with his father. “I want people to remember his smile, and I want them to smile a lot, too,” he told Kan.
Netanel Shakron widow, Merav, eulogized her husband at the funeral, saying, “At the very last second, he warned Yoav. Thank you, Nati, for your bravery and for seeing Yoav,” according to Kan.
Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, who attended the funeral, addressed Yoav, saying, “He told you, ‘Terrorist! Run!’ Yoav, you are a true hero; Dad is proud of you for listening to him. You saved your own life and the lives of everyone who was at the spring, because the terrorist ran after you,” the report added.
Netanel Shakron was a father of six and worked as an information systems analyst, Hebrew media reported. His wife holds a PhD in computer science and lectures in artificial intelligence at Ariel University. His grandfather, who was a rabbi in Algeria, was murdered on the steps of a synagogue some 70 years ago, a family member noted during the funeral.
The terrorist who killed him is a Hamas operative, per Ynet. He was detained after being shot and wounded by soldiers. He reportedly visited the Ein Raya spring a day before the attack to observe the area, knowing that Israelis come to immerse in the spring on the eve of Yom Kippur.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said on Monday that the attack was the first case to meet the criteria of his law that imposes the death penalty on terrorists.
“The terrorist is alive, and therefore this is a mandatory punishment,” Ben-Gvir said on X.
The Otzma Yehudit Party demands that the law be applied to “the accursed terrorist,” he added.