This morning on the news they mentioned that the government needs to reform the law regarding officials attending national funerals, since no official representation by the government showed at any of the four funerals yesterday of the casualties from the terrorist lorry-ramming attack. Funerals of terror victims are a national affair, and a government official is expected to attend.
Eight years ago, a family member of mine was murdered in the terrorist attack on Beit Chabad in Mumbai, India. It took an entire week for all the bodies to be brought to Israel. Thousands of Israelis turned up for the funeral. And so did a deputy minister from the Knesset – a Muslim. Yes, they sent a kippa-donning (for the funeral) Muslim official to serve as the government rep at a Jewish funeral for a Jew who was murdered by radical Pakistani Muslims.
I always had mixed feelings about this.
I can’t believe no government officals went to the funerals. That’s outrageous! I know that two of the families asked reporters to stay away. I don’t know if that was honored or not but I’m shocked to hear the government didn’t organize this – that each major party didn’t send at least one representative. I guess, sadly, they were too busy talking politics to attend!
Reporters are one thing and an honorable government presence another. Especially after the Azaria carnival, I can understand why grieving families do not want similar cheap paparazzi-like coverage by the leftist media.