Lt. Col. Yishai Rozilio, a battalion commander in the paratroopers brigade, paid a condolence call Tuesday to the bereaved relatives of Evyatar Yosefi, the IDF soldier who drowned Monday morning during an overnight field navigation training exercise.
According to a report by Channel 2, Pinchas Yosefi, Evyatar’s father, excoriated Lt. Col. Rozilio during the visit, saying that his son died a meaningless death, and claiming Rozilio had ignored him prior to the visit.
“Don’t try and make fools of us. Do you [even] know his name? Do you know his serial number? Where he’s buried? You’re here for a condolence call, but in an hour you’ll be out somewhere sipping coffee. You don’t give a damn.”
“I waited all night to meet you,” continued the bereaved father. “All night, and you haven’t given me any answers. You won’t answer me about anything. How will you prevent other soldiers from being killed? What did [my son] die for? For nothing. Not in a war, not in a terror attack. Just for nothing.”
Lt. Col. Rozilio urged the family to wait until the IDF probe into their son’s death is complete.
“We are conducting an investigation, and then you’ll get all the answers.”
Twenty-year-old Evyatar Yosefi was killed early Monday morning training exercise in the Galilee.
While attempting to cross the Nahal Hilazon creek, which had been flooded due to heavy rains, Yosefi slipped and fell into the flood waters, drowning.
His remains were found an hour and a half later.