Lone soldiers from 35 countries mark Passover with Rivlin, chief of staff

Around 400 lone soldiers from 35 countries on Friday celebrated the Passover holiday with President Reuven Rivlin and Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi.

Their festive Seder dinner took place at a resort village run by the Yahad nonprofit for IDF soldiers in the coastal city of Hadera.

Rivlin came to the event from the Beilinson Hospital, where his wife Nechama is hospitalized. It was the couple’s first Passover apart in 40 years, the Ynet news site reported.

“While we’re celebrating, IDF soldiers are deployed in the air, on the sea and on land, behind us and on the front line, and they’ll continue to take care of the nation’s security so that we’ll have a happy holiday. So, happy holiday,” Kochavi said at the event.

Lone soldier status is a classification given to orphaned personnel or those that do not have a connection with their living parents, in addition to those who do not have at least one parent within the country.

Thousands of foreign-born military personnel classify under this special status, as many immigrate to Israel alone or serve through Mahal — an organization within the IDF that allows Jewish non-citizens of Israel from around the world to volunteer in the military.