An Israeli military reservist has been killed in the Gaza Strip just weeks after successfully auditioning for a television program that chooses the country's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Shaul Greenglick, 26, performed in "Israel's Rising Star" on Dec. 3 while on leave from his mobilization in the war against Hamas. Dressed in a military uniform and lieutenant's stripes, he sang a popular ballad and moved on to the next round of the selection process.
One of the judges, Keren Peles, told Greenglick on stage: "I'm glad to see you in uniform, because it's reassuring that someone like you is in uniform. I would be glad to see you representing Israel at Eurovision."
But Peles, writing after Greenglick's death in the northern Gaza clashes was published on Tuesday, said he had left the program because of his obligations in the infantry reserves.
"I imagined this year in a different way, as a year of aspirations and living my dreams," Greenglick said in a Dec. 14 post on Facebook, which featured his work as a travel health advisor.
"Now I am living an old dream, that of fighting for the country.... A new, different dream will have to wait a little."
At least 166 soldiers have been killed in the Israeli offensive against Gaza, launched on October 7 after Hamas gunmen killed more than 1,200 people and kidnapped about 240 in its south. More than 21,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza during the war.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 will be held in May in Malmo (Sweden).
