Naftali Fraenkel, Gilad Shaer and Eyal Yifrach, the three Israeli teenagers found murdered on Monday near Hebron, were interred Tuesday side by side in a cemetery in Modiin, in central Israel.
The funeral was attended by tens of thousands, and both President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the congregation.
"We prayed for a miracle, unfortunately a tragedy occurred," Peres said, adding: "We will strike with a strong hand until terror is eradicated at the root. Terrorism is a boomerang," the president added, saying that acts of terror such as the kidnapping are directed at Israel, but do more harm to those who carry out the acts."
Netanyahu described the three teenagers as “the pure who will remain young forever”. He said the killings exposed the “chasm between us and our enemies: They sanctify death and we sanctify life. They sanctify cruelty and we sanctify mercy.”
Finance Minister Yair Lapid said at a ceremony for Gilad Shaer in Talmon: "I understand the desire for revenge, but what we need now is love, togetherness."
Uri Yifrach, Eyal's father, described his son as having had “a special love for every person”. He said: “You once said to me: ‘If I am asked for help I can’t refuse, I have to help.’ You were a model to your brothers. You gave strength to so many people.”
At Naftali Fraenkel's ceremony near his Nof Ayalon home, his mother Rachel thanked the police and the IDF. She said: "You promised you would find them and you did, that is a great kindness."
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