Israeli Soccer Team Adopts 3-Year-Old Terror Victim

In a poignant gesture, a soccer team comprised of terror victims has embraced a young boy into their fold after he himself became a victim. 

A three-year-old Israeli boy whose leg was severely wounded in a Palestinian terrorist attack in October 2015 and whose father was murdered in the same attack joined a soccer team comprised of fellow survivors.

Natan Bennett joined the OneFamily organization’s soccer team—made up of relatives of terror victims as well as survivors of attacks—in a ceremony Thursday in Jerusalem. His mother, Adele, also seriously wounded in the attack, was in attendance.

Natan’s father, Aharon Bennett, 24, a father of two, and Nechemia Lavi, 41, a father of seven were murdered in a stabbing attack in Jerusalem’s Old City on October 3, 2015.

The terrorist, killed in a shootout with police forces, has since become a Palestinian national hero.

OneFamily “empowers victims of terror to rebuild their lives, rehabilitate and reintegrate through emotional, legal and financial assistance programs,” according to the organization’s website.

“Our goal is not only to win,” said the OneFamily soccer team’s coach, Ami Ben-David. “Every single player of your team is a family member. Today we were joined be a new player—Natan Bennett. From now on, he has a huge supporting family.”

“While on the field we see a football (soccer) game, there is something much deeper going on,” OneFamily CEO Chantal Belzberg said in a statement. “We know that Natan is a football fan. Therefore, we thought it would be a good idea for the team to ‘adopt’ him.”

By: JNS.org and United with Israel Staff