Crowds gathered today (Sunday) to accompany Staff Sergeant Itay Chen on his final journey. The funeral procession began at his family’s home in Netanya and continued to the Kiryat Shaul military cemetery in Tel Aviv, where the ceremony was held in the presence of family members, friends, and public figures. Chen, a tank gunner in the 77th Battalion who fell in battle at Nahal Oz on October 7, 2023, and was abducted by Hamas, was returned to Israel for burial last week after more than two years.
At the start of the ceremony, recordings from the tank crew’s communications on the morning of the battle were played. In one of them, a voice can be heard saying: “Let’s make sure there isn’t a kidnapping incident from Nahal Oz into Gaza, that’s our mission.” In other recordings, the crew is heard shouting orders to block an attempted abduction: “Run him over, they’ll try to kidnap.” Family members wore shirts bearing Itay’s photo and the words “Our Lion King forever.” His father, Rubi, and brothers, Roy and Alon, recited the Kaddish.
President Isaac Herzog delivered a eulogy, highlighting the ongoing struggle to bring home the hostages and the fallen for burial in Israel. “Our beloved, hero of Israel. At long last, you have returned to us after more than two years of longing, outcry, and pain. In this sacred moment, I cry out, demand, and remind, the mission is not yet complete.”
He went on to reiterate his call for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into the events of October 7: “I repeat this call here as well, because it is clear to all of us that only an independent, professional, and comprehensive investigation can provide answers to these questions, which the Chen family and countless Israelis have been asking themselves every day since October 7th. At the same time, I emphasize — our healing and repair after this great rupture must be grounded in the unity of Israel, in our shared togetherness.”
Also attending the funeral were members of the tank crew and past and present commanders, including Staff Sergeant Matan Angrist, a survivor of Hamas captivity, as well as former Chiefs of Staff Herzl Halevi, Gadi Eizenkot, Yair Lapid, and Benny Gantz. Among the mourners were also former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and retired Major General Yoav (Poli) Mordechai. According to IDF sources, on the morning of October 7, Chen’s tank crew fought dozens of militants near Nahal Oz; Corporal Tomer Leibovitz fell in battle, Captain Daniel Peretz was kidnapped and later returned for burial, and Angrest was taken alive and released after more than two years.
Ittay Chen’s father, Ruby Chen, eulogized his son: “Ittay, you were part of a new generation of Zionism, a generation that, to everyone’s sorrow and to our immense grief, had to forge its Zionism through fire, blood, and tremendous sacrifice. You set high standards for your friends who were left behind, helping them build a more ethical state, a state that truly sanctifies life and mutual responsibility, not just in words.” He added: “I ask forgiveness that it took two years to bring you back. I vow to you, we will hold accountable those who said it was impossible to bring you back sooner and those who dragged their feet for reasons light-years away from the security of the state. Forty-two Israeli soldiers and civilians who were taken alive have returned in coffins.”
Itay Chen’s mother, Hagit Chen, eulogized him in grief: “Itay, I’m sorry you had to wait so long to come home. I protected your honor as best I could. For two years and a month, I told everyone how rare, brave, heroic, funny, handsome, and talented you are. Everyone has been waiting for you. It’s so tragic that this is the end. I understand I’ll have to accept that I won’t be able to hug you anymore.” She added: “Itay, thank you for the privilege and honor of being your parents for 19 years, 8 months, and 5 days. I love you to the heavens and back. Rest well, my dear. We will meet again.”
Throughout the day, thousands of citizens accompanied the funeral procession, which traveled from Netanya along major traffic routes to the cemetery. Chen was the last soldier taken hostage in the current war and the last to hold American citizenship; he leaves behind his parents and two brothers. At the conclusion of the ceremony, IDF officers delivered farewell remarks, highlighting the tank crew’s “determination and bravery” in fighting against the wave of terror that swept the Gaza border communities that morning. The Families of the Hostages unit stated that Ittay’s return for burial in Israel provides partial solace to a family that lived in uncertainty for more than two years, and that efforts will continue until the return of the last fallen hostages.
