Israeli President Isaac Herzog sent US President Joe Biden Hermesh family menorah from Kibbutz Kfar Aza in honor of the annual menorah lighting at the White House.
The menorah, which belongs to former MK Shai Hermesh, survived the Hamas attack on Kfar Aza on October 7th.
Shai was locked in his home in the Kibbutz for around 20 hours, along with family members, until the entire Kibbutz was rescued by IDF soldiers. Shai's son, Omer, also a resident of Kfar Gaza, was murdered by terrorists during the attack.
Shai later discovered that his family home had been used as a command post by the Hamas terrorists who infiltrated and attacked the Kibbutz. It had been vandalized and completely destroyed.
A few days after the terrorist attack, Shai Hermesh decided to return to his home in order to look for objects that may have survived the terrorist attack. He was amazed to find that his tefillin (phylacteries) and Menorah were among the only items left unscathed.
Upon hearing the moving story, President Herzog was pleased to accept the Menorah and send it to President Biden to mark Chanukah, the festival of light.