Gantz also raised the issue of the four Israelis at the small Tel Aviv ceremony, in which he took over the mantle of Defense Minister from Naftali Bennett. At the ceremony, he promised “not to rest” until Goldin and Shaul were returned home.
“It is a moral, national and personal obligation,” he said, adding that in the spring he also promised to work for the release of Mengistu and al-Sayad, both of whom have been held captive by Hamas for over five years.
Outgoing Defense Minister Naftali Bennett apologized for failing to return the bodies of Goldin and Shaul.
“There is one mission that to my sorrow we didn’t finish. We have not returned the fallen soldiers of Operation Protective Edge, Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, may their memory be a blessing," Bennet said.He then turned to Gantz, saying "Benny, the two of us, I in the cabinet and you as Chief of Staff, sent them on their mission and it is our responsibility to bring them back for a proper burial in Israel.”