At the annual Outstanding Soldiers Ceremony at the President's Residence on Thursday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir said that the IDF is preparing to deliver a "decisive blow" against Hamas and that the military will increase the pace and intensity of the operations in Gaza soon, if necessary. “The Hamas terrorists still hold fifty-nine of our brothers and sisters. But they, too, know their safety is not forever,” Zamir said. “Our sovereignty and independence were not given to us as a gift. They were bought with blood and struggle, and they require us to defend them at all costs.”
The purpose of the ceremony is to honor outstanding soldiers in the IDF. At the beginning of Zamir’s speech, he defined what it means to be outstanding. “Excellence is not measured by who is the most talented or the most brilliant. It is granted to the one who perseveres. It is a quiet, daily choice to act with responsibility, commitment, and integrity — even when no one is watching,” Zamir said. Zamir noted that this year, the ceremony has “special significance. You are receiving recognition during a time of war,” he said, “A long and complex war, in multiple arenas, against numerous threats, which is still ongoing.”
Zamir also highlighted the responsibility Israeli citizens have for one another. "For the State of Israel, this idea is essential to its existence and resilience, and no one is exempt—not individuals, not groups, and not tribes," Zamir said. "We all enlist, we all fight together, and we all sacrifice together—for the sake of the state and for a better future. Because one shared destiny placed us here, in this land,” he said. (Read More)
