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Elite Israel Soldier Killed in Gaza Laid to Rest in Moving Ceremony
Israeli soldiers gathered in a field near the border with Gaza listen to a speech by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Photo: Reuters/Ronen Zvulun
Friends, families, and strangers gathered in the Israel city of Modi’in on Sunday for an emotional funeral for Sgt. Maj. Alon Kudriashov, who fell in battle last week fighting the Hamas terror group in the Gaza Strip.
“Alon, my stunning boy, I can’t believe that now I am saying goodbye to you,” said Kudriashov’s mother, Kira. “You are my heart, my soul. Alon, you are every mother’s dream. A smart, stunning boy, always tidy. You were the best friend; you gave me the right to be a happy mother for 21 years. I love you endlessly; you will always be everywhere.”
A member of the elite Egoz commando unit in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Kudriashov, 21, was hit by rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) fire on Friday, killing him and injuring 16 other member of his unit.
The incident took place in the Al-Amal neighborhood in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis, where there has been extensive fighting. Terrorists shot the RPG at the top floor of the building where the troops were stationed. The IDF on Sunday announced the death of Sgt. First Class Sivan Wail, 20, from Raanana, who succumbed to his injuries from the attack.
Kudriashov’s father, Sergey, also spoke about his son during the funeral.
“You are my son and friend, the best, perfect and reliable,” he said. “We have always been a team. You learned from me, and I learned from you. We always had fun together in everything we did. You completed your task. I am proud of you and salute you.”
Kudriashov’s family said that the fallen soldier was home the weekend before, enjoying Shabbat with his parents and sister, and had plans to travel the world after he finished his service. His sister Keren said at the funeral, “We think of you every second of the day. Love of my life, love of my pure truth, I will continue to live here for you. Every step I take will be for you. You are always here with me, never leaving me. I feel you in my whole heart, in my whole body, in my whole soul.”
Kudriashov was the 254th Israeli soldier to die since the IDF entered Gaza on Oct. 27, about three weeks after Hamas terrorists invaded Israel from the neighboring Palestinian enclave, murdering 1,200 people and kidnapping 253 others as hostages. The total number of Israeli security forces — IDF, Police, Shin Bet, and Maglan — who have perished since Oct. 7 now stands at 600.
The post Elite Israel Soldier Killed in Gaza Laid to Rest in Moving Ceremony first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Says Missile Launched by Yemen’s Houthis ‘Most Likely’ Intercepted
Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
The Israeli army said on Saturday that a missile fired from Yemen towards Israeli territory had been “most likely successfully intercepted,” while Yemen’s Houthi forces claimed responsibility for the launch.
Israel has threatened Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement – which has been attacking Israel in what it says is solidarity with Gaza – with a naval and air blockade if its attacks on Israel persist.
The Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group was responsible for Saturday’s attack, adding that it fired a missile towards the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.
Since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023, the Houthis, who control most of Yemen, have been firing at Israel and at shipping in the Red Sea, disrupting global trade.
Most of the dozens of missiles and drones they have launched have been intercepted or fallen short. Israel has carried out a series of retaliatory strikes.
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Iran Holds Funeral for Commanders and Scientists Killed in War with Israel
People attend the funeral procession of Iranian military commanders, nuclear scientists and others killed in Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 28, 2025. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Large crowds of mourners dressed in black lined streets in Iran’s capital Tehran as the country held a funeral on Saturday for top military commanders, nuclear scientists and some of the civilians killed during this month’s aerial war with Israel.
At least 16 scientists and 10 senior commanders were among those mourned at the funeral, according to state media, including armed forces chief Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Revolutionary Guards commander General Hossein Salami, and Guards Aerospace Force chief General Amir Ali Hajizadeh.
Their coffins were driven into Tehran’s Azadi Square adorned with their photos and national flags, as crowds waved flags and some reached out to touch the caskets and throw rose petals onto them. State-run Press TV showed an image of ballistic missiles on display.
Mass prayers were later held in the square.
State TV said the funeral, dubbed the “procession of the Martyrs of Power,” was held for a total of 60 people killed in the war, including four women and four children.
In attendance were President Masoud Pezeshkian and other senior figures including Ali Shamkhani, who was seriously wounded during the conflict and is an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as Khamenei’s son Mojtaba.
“Today, Iranians, through heroic resistance against two regimes armed with nuclear weapons, protected their honor and dignity, and look to the future prouder, more dignified, and more resolute than ever,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who also attended the funeral, said in a Telegram post.
There was no immediate statement from Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since the conflict began. In past funerals, he led prayers over the coffins of senior commanders ahead of public ceremonies broadcast on state television.
Israel launched the air war on June 13, attacking Iranian nuclear facilities and killing top military commanders as well as civilians in the worst blow to the Islamic Republic since the 1980s war with Iraq.
Iran retaliated with barrages of missiles on Israeli military sites, infrastructure and cities. The United States entered the war on June 22 with strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
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Israel, the only Middle Eastern country widely believed to have nuclear weapons, said it aimed to prevent Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons.
Iran denies having a nuclear weapons program. The U.N. nuclear watchdog has said it has “no credible indication” of an active, coordinated weapons program in Iran.
Bagheri, Salami and Hajizadeh were killed on June 13, the first day of the war. Bagheri was being buried at the Behesht Zahra cemetery outside Tehran mid-afternoon on Saturday. Salami and Hajizadeh were due to be buried on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would consider bombing Iran again, while Khamenei, who has appeared in two pre-recorded video messages since the start of the war, has said Iran would respond to any future US attack by striking US military bases in the Middle East.
A senior Israeli military official said on Friday that Israel had delivered a “major blow” to Iran’s nuclear project. On Saturday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said in a statement that Israel and the US “failed to achieve their stated objectives” in the war.
According to Iranian health ministry figures, 610 people were killed on the Iranian side in the war before a ceasefire went into effect on Tuesday. More than 4,700 were injured.
Activist news agency HRANA put the number of killed at 974, including 387 civilians.
Israel’s health ministry said 28 were killed in Israel and 3,238 injured.
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Pro-Palestinian Rapper Leads ‘Death to the IDF’ Chant at English Music festival
Revellers dance as Avril Lavigne performs on the Other Stage during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm, in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 30, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Dylan Martinez
i24 News – Chants of “death to the IDF” were heard during the English Glastonbury music festival on Saturday ahead of the appearance of the pro-Palestinian Irish rappers Kneecap.
One half of punk duo based Bob Vylan (who both use aliases to protect their privacy) shouted out during a section of their show “Death to the IDF” – the Israeli military. Videos posted on X (formerly Twitter) show the crowd responding to and repeating the cheer.
This comes after officials had petitioned the music festival to drop the band. The rap duo also expressed support for the following act, Kneecap, who the BCC refused to show live after one of its members, Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh – better known by stage name Mo Chara – was charged with a terror offense.
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