Israeli Roman Brodsky, killed fleeing Ukraine, laid to rest in Arad

Roman Brodsky, an Israeli man who was killed last week by Ukrainian troops in an apparent case of mistaken identity as he tried to flee the fighting, was buried Sunday in the southern city of Arad.

Dozens of family members and friends attended the funeral.

“My dear child, my son, you were everything, my pride, my glory. Until now my heart refuses to believe I will not hear your voice, I will not see your eyes. We talked the day before; if only I had known it was the last day, the last moment,” Brodsky’s father Efim said, according Hebrew media reports.

“I want to believe that you can hear me now,” he said and described how Roman was always eager to help others.

The Foreign Ministry said Brodsky was part of a convoy of vehicles traveling to the Moldovan border to leave the country. He and his partner were intending to then fly to Israel.

Brodsky was shot dead last Monday by Ukrainian troops after he was apparently mistaken for a Chechen soldier.

Video footage published by Israeli television purportedly showed the deadly shooting. The footage showed a stopped car coming under sustained fire, with at least one person shooting toward the vehicle from close range.

Though it was Ukrainian soldiers who shot Brodsky, his family told Channel 12 that they blame the “dictator” Vladimir Putin for his death.

Brodsky came to Israel at age 13 with his family. He lived in the country for around 27 years and had two small children. He returned to Ukraine about two years ago to start a business in Kyiv.

Brodsky’s body was brought back to Israel on Friday.

Returning his body in the midst of the ongoing conflict was complicated. His remains were first flown to Moldova, then to Romania, and finally to Tel Aviv.