Zehava Shaul, mother of Staff Sergeant Oron Shaul, has passed away
A year and a half after her son's body was extracted from the Gaza Strip and brought to burial in Poriya Illit, his mother, Zehava Shaul, has passed away. For a decade, she stood at the forefront of the public struggle for his return, which concluded in early 2025.
Zehava Shaul, mother of Golani Brigade fighter Staff Sergeant Oron Shaul (of blessed memory), has passed away at the age of 71. Her passing comes a year and a half after the body of her son, abducted to the Gaza Strip during Operation Protective Edge in 2014, was returned to Israel in a special operation by the IDF and the Shin Bet after a decade of being held by the Hamas organization.
The date and details of Zehava Shaul's funeral have not yet been published. The ceremony is expected to take place at the cemetery in her settlement of Poriya in the Jordan Valley, where her son Oron was laid to rest.
Zehava Shaul and her family members waged a persistent struggle for years for the return of their son's body, while he was considered a fallen soldier whose burial place was unknown. The family worked continuously with political and security officials in Israel and abroad to keep the issue in the public eye. Oron's father, Herzel Shaul (of blessed memory), passed away from a severe illness in 2016 and did not live to see his son's return. After Herzel's passing, Zehava continued to work tirelessly for her son's return.
Oron Shaul was born on December 27, 1993. He grew up in Poriya Illit, studied at the Beit Yerah High School, and served as a fighter in the Golani Brigade. On Independence Day 2014, about two months before he fell in battle, he was awarded the President's Excellence Award.
On July 20, 2014, during the Battle of Shuja'iyya in Operation Protective Edge, the M-113 armored personnel carrier in which he was traveling was hit by anti-tank missile fire. In that incident, six other soldiers were killed, and Shaul was defined as a fallen soldier whose burial place was unknown after his body was abducted by Hamas and held as a bargaining chip.
Closing the circle: Operation 'Shuvu Beyadeinu'
On January 18, 2025, during the Iron Swords War, Oron's body was extracted from the Gaza Strip in a joint operation by the IDF and the Shin Bet titled Operation 'Shuvu Beyadeinu' (Return to Our Hands). The extraction allowed the family to close a circle after long years of waiting. Zehava Shaul is survived by two sons.
