Here are some excerpts from a brief letter to the world from Yosef Viner, a 97-year-old Israeli: “The Nazis murdered Yosef’s family. Now Hamas killed his grandchildren,” Jerusalem Post, November 16, 2023:
Eighty years ago, the Nazis killed Yosef Viner’s family. Now Hamas killed some of his grandchildren….
“I am Yosef Viner, 97 years old,” he wrote. “I survived the fire of the Nazi beasts; my entire family perished. Disconnected from my roots, I devoted myself to their memory. Exhausted and despairing, I held onto the land and moved to Israel. I married Aviva, and together we raised two wonderful children, Ofer and Nurit.”…
“From Ofer and Michal, we had four grandchildren; from Nurit and Miki we had six grandchildren,” Yosef said. “On October 7, 2023, we experienced pure evil – fire, dust, killing, and the horrific murder of innocents. Once again, tragedy struck. My beloved grandson Yahav was murdered while protecting his wife Shaili and one-month-old Shiya. My dear granddaughter Hadar and her husband Itai were also murdered while protecting their ten-month-old twins, Roy and Guy.”…
Remembering Yahav [a grandson of Yosef Viner]
“My sweetheart, I feel your presence inside myself,” said Shaili at Yahav’s funeral. “I remember us lying on a mattress together, knowing I’d never break up with you.”
The young woman recalled Yahav’s last moments, highlighting how he sacrificed himself to save her and their daughter.
“You held the door for us; you could have escaped through the window, but you loved me so much that you managed to block them,” she said.
That’s one story about what Hamas did on October 7. The anguish and despair of Yosef Viner, for his murdered grandchildren, Yahav and Hadar, the pride and sorrow of Yahav’s widow Shaili, the great-grandchildren who are too young to know, but will grow into the knowledge of their loss. The great-grandsons Roy and Guy will learn that on that day, protecting them, both of their parents, Hadar and Itay, were murdered. The great-granddaughter Shiya will learn how her father Yahav died, holding off the murderers so that she, and her mother, could escape.
This is Yosef Viner’s story of what happened to his family. There are so many. Try not to forget.