"Spitting on Ron's grave": Hostage's mother against Eden Ben Zaken

Dr. Maayan Sherman is the mother of Sergeant Ron Sherman (of blessed memory), who was kidnapped from the Coordination and Liaison Administration base at the Erez Crossing on October 7, and whose body was recovered from Hamas captivity in December 2023. Since the heavy tragedy, Dr. Sherman has become a sharp and piercing voice against the political echelon and the leadership's conduct regarding the hostage issue.

Now, Sherman is raising the level of protest and is also turning to the cultural arena. In a poignant post she published on her Facebook account, Ron's mother called for a sweeping boycott of the singer Eden Ben Zaken. The public protest ignited following the hosting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on stage during Ben Zaken's performance at the Menora Arena, a move that caused much resentment.

In her harsh words on Facebook, Sherman clarified that as far as she is concerned, any person or body that continues to fund the singer, including watching television programs in which she participates, is "spitting on Ron's grave."

The anger expressed by Sherman joins the sharp criticism voiced a day earlier by hostage survivor Agam Goldstein-Almog as well. Goldstein-Almog spoke out sharply against the Prime Minister's arrival at a festive entertainment show, while he has avoided meeting or speaking directly with her since she was released from captivity. For the mothers and the survivors, the joint celebration on stage in the midst of the fighting days was perceived as a direct and unnecessary injury to the families' feelings.