The parents of a British-Israeli soldier who bravely gave his life during the tragic events of October 7 discovered a poignant final message in his never-before-released music.
Brave Aner Shapira, 22, heroically threw back seven live grenades hurled into a bomb shelter by callous Hamas fighters in a bid to save his friends.
In gripping footage, the soldier is seen in a t-shirt and sandals, courageously throwing grenades from the shelter where he and 26 others were seeking safety.
Tragically, the eighth device exploded and killed the fearless off-duty soldier.
His resilient parents, dad Moshe and mum Shira, said they were not surprised by his courageous act.
They first heard about their son’s heroics from two people who survived the barbaric October 7 attack thanks to Aner.
Proud dad Moshe said: “We got a phone call from a girl, a survivor, and said said ‘I want to tell you, due to Aner, I’m alive. Your son is a hero’.
“When the videos of the grenades came out and went viral, people told us it’s amazing what he did.
“But nobody [his friends, family, colleagues] was surprised.
“Since he was a small child, it was obvious that was his spirit.”
Shira added: “He always took a stand. When he saw something was not right, he would come and feel like it was his own business to make it better.
“He acted like that, and he also wrote about it.”
Keen pianist Aner, who grew up in the quiet south Jerusalem neighbourhood of Talpiot, fell in love with music at an early age.
Aner, the eldest of seven children, later explored rap and hip-hop, often singing about social justice and unity.
Following his passing, his parents uncovered a collection of his music, which they released as an album titled Looking for Love, in honor of what would have been his 24th birthday.
In one song, they found a poignant final message from the IDF Staff Sergeant.
Moshe said: “Whenever people ask us about Aner, they want us to tell them about the last half an hour of his life, the battle, the shelter, what happened with the grenades.
“But we insist on looking at his whole life.”
Shira added: “He found the best way for him to combine his love for music and his love of his principals, his values, his ideas…was composing, singing and recording his music.
“We have more than 60 songs that he left expressing his values and his way of life, and he wanted to publish his album, but he didn’t have the chance.
Gaza offensive puts hostages ‘in danger’
by Katie Davis, Chief Foreign Reporter (Digital), in Paris
ISRAEL’S new offensive in Gaza hinders bringing the remaining hostages home and puts them in “immediate danger”, a former diplomat has warned.
Ex-Israeli ambassador Daniel Shek questioned the point of the latest ground operation against Hamas as he insisted the military is now “going around in circles”.
Earlier this year, there was a glimmer of hope as both the terror group and Israel laid down their arms and 33 hostages – 25 alive – were released.
But Shek said the three-phase plan failed to reach its second phase as Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition partners vowed they would leave if it did – collapsing the government.
Now Israel risks sanctions from the UK and France after launching a renewed ground offensive just after Donald Trump left the region without fixing a ceasefire deal.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun in Paris, Shek warned the fresh operation – dubbed Gideon’s Chariots – has a “two-fold danger” for those still captive.
His call for the Israeli government to prioritise returning the hostages through diplomatic means before crushing Hamas was echoed by Shoshan Haran, who was kidnapped by terrorists.
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“So we released it for his birthday.
“In one of his songs, he’s saying ‘if something happens to me, if I’m dead, publish my album’.”
Talented Aner was enjoying the Nova music festival in southern Israel with a close group of friends when it was stormed by gun-toting Hamas terrorists.
As rocket fire rang out, Aner – the grandson of the late Israeli lawmaker Haim Moshe Shapira – and his pals rushed to a roadside bomb shelter next to kibbutz Re’im.
Aner bravely positioned himself in the doorway to protect the other 26 hiding inside as brutal fighters bombarded the shelter with grenades.
He throw them out one by one before the eighth killed him.
Of those inside, 16 were murdered and four others were kidnapped by merciless Hamas militants.
The four hostages taken were Aner’s best friend Hersh Goldberg-Polin who lost his arm in the attack before being murdered in Gaza.
Eliya Cohen and Or Levy have been released, while another victim, Eynav, was killed.
What happened on October 7?
ON October 7 2023, militants of Hamas and other Palestinian nationalist groups launched co-ordinated armed attacks in the Gaza Envelope of southern Israel.
The perpetrators had managed to bypass Israeli defences to para-glide across the border, in what became the first invasion of the territory since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
The horror coincided with the Jewish celebration of Simchat Torah, and initiated the ongoing Israel-Hamas War.
A barrage of around 4,300 rockets were launched on Israel from the Gaza Strip in the early hours of October 7 before vehicles and powered paragliders crossed the border.
The Hamas fighters attacked military bases and massacred civilians in 21 communities, including Be’eri, Kfar Aza, Nir Oz, Netiv Haasara, and Alumim.
The first civilian attack started at 6.29am at the Nova Music Festival site at Re’im, just three miles from Gaza.
More than 360 revellers were cut down as they desperately tried to flee.
Across October 7, an estimated 1,139 people were massacred and another 250 civilians and soldiers were taken hostage into Gaza.
