Since the death of Ahuvia Sandak, z”l, who was tragically killed in a police car chase on Tevet 6 5781/ December 21, 2020, Honenu has been representing those who are insisting on the investigation of the incident and defending the many who are detained while demonstrating for change in police behavior. The car Ahuvia was in with four other boys overturned when the police car collided with it from behind. Please click here for a list of posts connected to the case.
Saturday, December 31, 2022, 20:39 To mark the two-year anniversary of the death of Ahuvia Sandak, z”l, his family, friends, and public figures visited his grave in the Kfar Etzion Cemetery. Former Deputy Head of the Police Investigation Unit (PIU), Knesset Member Moshe Saada, was among the people paying their respects at the gravesite memorial. MK Saada has been in continuous contact with the Sandak family since he left his post with the PIU. During the memorial, MK Saada spoke at Ahuvia’s gravesite and apologized in the name of the office of the State Attorney for the handling of the investigation of the incident in which Ahuvia met his death.
MK Moshe Saada: “I did not know Ahuvia, z”l. I heard his name for the first time on the day of the incident itself, in the context of the miscarriages of justice that I saw in the case, as someone who was part of the [judicial] system. I asked myself why in the State of Israel, the Zionist State, ‘the beginning of our redemption,’ miscarriages of justice of this kind happen. And truly, I innocently thought that if I shouted this to the system, then a great cry would arise from one end to the other. For all of our time in the State Attorney’s office, all we heard was ‘Justice, justice you shall pursue,’ and I discovered that for this incident, they blocked their ears from hearing.”
MK Saada continued, “I am part of the system, I love the system, but this story of Ahuvia and the signs ‘Justice for Ahuvia’ I think, illustrate that justice was not done. When I left the system, the first thing that I did was meet with the parents and apologize in the name of the system. The system did not send me to apologize, but it was my responsibility as a human being ‘because the blood of your brother is crying out from the earth’. From my point of view, he is a son to all of us. And where there is an injustice, one must do justice. This is my mission, and also you must help with this. Everyone and their own effort.
“I heard this from Avraham [Ahuvia’s father] several times: In the end, we look for the meaning of things. One wants to know. It could be that from this place, from the difficult and painful death, a system of justice will be produced, ‘Restore our judges as in former times’. [from the Amida prayer].
[A system] of justice that is connected to inheriting the Land [of Israel]. ‘Justice, justice you shall pursue that you may live, and inherit the land.’ [Deut. 16:20] I hope that we will succeed with the specific rectification necessitated by this incident, and G-d willing, from this point onward we will succeed in changing the justice system in the State of Israel.”
In conclusion, MK Saada said that the role of the newly formed government is to produce justice, partially to bring justice to light in this case: “This is an important point in time, and nobody in the world thought that everything would come together in this manner. Yesterday, a government arose, a new government in the State of Israel arose, and I hope that, G-d willing, we will succeed in producing justice.”
Avraham, Ahuvia’s father, also spoke, and Honenu director Shmuel (Zangi) Meidad, who has been assisting the family since the incident, for the entire two years, participated in the memorial.
On Thursday (December 29) the Sandak family held a large memorial for Ahuvia with approximately 500 participants. During the memorial, participants spoke in memory of Ahuvia, Avraham Sandak arranged a siyum masechet in his memory, Ezra Tuvi gave a talk about hilltop youth, and singer Bini Landau put on a performance.
MK Limor Son Har-Melech spoke at the memorial and emphasized her responsibility to work toward forming a committee to investigate the policemen who were involved in the incident that caused Ahuvia’s death: “The entire time that the policemen remain in their positions is an unbelievable situation,” said Son Har-Melech.