‘A Wonderful Man With a Heart of Gold’: Oldest Hostage Shlomo Mansour Laid to Rest

Jerusalem, 2 March, 2025 (TPS-IL) -- Thousands of Israelis gathered at Kibbutz Kissufim to pay their last respects to Shlomo Mansour, who at 85 was the oldest hostage from Hamas’s October 7 attacks. President Isaac Herzog, in his eulogy, reiterated a call for a state commission of inquiry.

“You told me how he survived the ‘Farhud’ pogrom that took place among the Jews of Baghdad in 1941 when he was a tender child. How he immigrated to Israel and built his life here. You told me about a wonderful man with a heart of gold and hands of gold, with giving to others and love for the people and the land, with an understanding of the Middle East – including the Arabic language that he wanted to pass on to the younger generation, with a belief in doing good, and most of all – with a deep faith in the country, in the community, in the family,” Herzog said, addressing Mansour’s family.

A carpenter and craftsman, Mansour was abducted from his home on Kibbutz Kissufim on the morning of October 7. On Feb. 11, 2025, the Israel Defense Forces declared Mansor dead based on intelligence. Mansour is survived by his wife of 60 years, children and grandchildren.

Herzog asked for the family’s forgiveness and reiterated his call for a commission of inquiry into the failures of October 7 and the period leading up to the attack.

“In this agonizing moment, as a public envoy of the entire State of Israel, I ask you for forgiveness and forgiveness. Forgiveness that we were unable to protect you in the place that was supposed to be your fortress. Forgiveness from you, from your family, from the Kissufim comrades and friends, and from the people of the entire western Negev, for not saving you on that bitter and hasty day,” said Herzog.

“These are days of soul-searching. Days in which the harsh [military] investigations into the failures of October 7 are published, and days of upheaval and change – of changes in Chiefs of Staff, and of sharp, painful and shocking observation of the serious and profound failures that led to the October 7 massacre. These are difficult days, saturated with extremely painful revelations, but we know: there is no other way to repair and heal, other than to investigate and find out in depth everything that caused the terrible massacre. Other than taking responsibility and carrying it, with the full weight of its significance, to ensure that we never experience such a terrible disaster again,” he said.

He added, “The only way to rebuild trust and ensure that we learn and draw the existential lessons – is through a state commission of inquiry according to the law, and I once again call for its establishment as soon as possible.”

According to a series of army probes — summaries of which were released publicly on Thursday — some 5,000 terrorists from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad managed to attack numerous Israeli communities and overrun the Israel Defense Force’s border positions. The army’s chain of command broke amid the chaos and soldiers were outnumbered. For years, the military misunderstood Hamas’s intentions, and as October 7 approached, intelligence about the looming attack was misinterpreted, according to the findings.

The military’s probes also found the military was more focused on threats from Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Iran.

The IDF’s inquiries only dealt with issues of operations, intelligence and command, not decisions made by the political echelon.

There have been growing calls for the government to appoint an independent commission of inquiry to investigate political and military failures. Such commissions have broader authority to summon witnesses and collect evidence and are headed by a senior Supreme Court justice. They may include personal recommendations about individuals under investigation, though the government is not bound to act on the recommendations.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other government ministers say a state inquiry into failings that led to Hamas’s October 7 attacks should only be held after the war. Critics accuse Netanyahu of delaying the inquiry and trying to water down the powers of a commission.

After the Movement for Quality Government in Israel petitioned the High Court of Justice to order the government to form such a commission, the justices gave the government a deadline of May 11 to update the justices on its position.

The last state commission of inquiry, which investigated Israel’s worst civilian disaster — a stampede that killed 45 people at a holy site on Mount Meron — held Netanyahu personally responsible for the tragedy in a report released in April.

At least 1,180 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 59 remaining hostages, 36 are believed to be dead.