Los Angeles native Max Steinberg, 24, showed his love for Israel by joining the Golani brigade, one of the most elite units of the Israel Defense Force. Now Israel has returned that love, with 30,000 Israelis turning out for the Steinberg’s funeral Wednesday at Israel’s military cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. Another fallen U.S. volunteer, Sean Carmeli of Texas, received a send-off from 20,000 Israelis at his funeral earlier this week.
Both Steinberg and Carmeli, were “lone soldiers,” foreign volunteers with no family in Israel. The Israeli public has long embraced lone soldiers, offering their homes for weekend leave, for example. Yet the outpouring of support this week is unprecedented in Israel’s history. The large attendance at the funerals is especially striking given that the country is still under constant threat of rocket attacks, making both travel and large crowds risky.
Attendance at the funerals has been driven by social media, especially among the fans of Israel’s Maccabi Haifa soccer team, of which Carmeli was a fan. Yet much of the public interest in the funerals is also spontaneous, according to Israeli media reports. Even U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who is pushing for a ceasefire, was taken aback by the size of Steinberg’s funeral: “That’s a remarkable statement – we’re very grateful,” he said.
The massive solidarity shown by Israelis towards American volunteers comes as Kerry and his boss, President Barack Obama, are doing all they can to stop Israel’s military effort by diplomatic means. On Tuesday, the FAA banned all U.S. flights to and from Israel for 24 hours following a Hamas rocket attack that struck a home one mile away from the airport. Kerry also recently mocked the Israeli military on a “live mic” on U.S. television.
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