The National Council of Young Israel announced today that CYIR:  Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel's Judaic Heritage Program for Israel's Deaf and Hearing Impaired (JHPIDHI) has been instrumental in offering much-needed assistance and support to the parents of fallen Israeli soldier Liran Banai.  Both of Banai's parents are deaf.

Sitting shiva for their son, Guy and Gila Banai are consoled by members of Israel's deaf community brought to their home by CYIR's Judaic Heritage Program for Israel's Deaf and Hearing Impaired.

Banai, a 20-year-old soldier in the Givati Brigade, was critically injured on March 6th when a bomb that was detonated by remote control exploded under the jeep he was driving.  At the time he was injured, Banai was patrolling the Gaza security fence near Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha.  Banai suffered massive injuries from the explosion and experienced significant blood loss as well as a partial leg amputation.  He died of his wounds on March 9th.

The parents of Israel Defense Forces Staff Sergeant Liran Banai, Guy and Gila Banai, are deaf and both of them have participated in CYIR's Judaic Heritage Program for Israel's Deaf and Hearing Impaired for a number of years.  Guy Banai also serves on the administration of the deaf Moadon (club) in Ashkelon with which JHPIDHI is affiliated.

According to Rabbi Aaron S. Tirschwell, the CYIR's Chief Program and Development Officer and Director of Israel Operations for National Council of Young Israel, Banai could have received an exemption from army service due to the fact that his parents are deaf.  Instead, he chose to serve in the army and to perform his service in an elite combat division.

"The tragic death of Liran Banai left a painful void in the lives of his parents that will not be easily filled," said Rabbi Tirschwell, "CYIR is grateful and honored to have the unique opportunity to offer assistance to the Banai family during this difficult time and hope that we have been able to make it a little bit easier for them to cope with the unimaginable."

In the aftermath of Liran Banai's death, Rabbi Chanoch Yeres, the Director of the Judaic Heritage Program for Israel's Deaf and Hearing Impaired (JHPIDHI), organized shiva visits to the Banai home in Ashkelon.  Rabbi Yeres and others were able to translate for a number of visitors to the shiva house so that they could communicate with Guy and Gila Banai.

At the request of the Banai family, JHPIDHI also organized a Leil Limud-Tikun (an evening of learning and Torah study) for the deaf at the Banai home during the shiva period.  Shiurim were presented by Rabbi Alex Yeres and Rabbi Dovid Ben Dovid.  JHPIDHI's staff organized buses and arranged for their program participants to travel to Ashkelon to visit the Banai family during the shiva period.

"As Guy and Gila Banai mourn the loss of their son who was killed while on the front lines of the war against Palestinian terror, JHPIDHI  will continue to provide them with the support and help that they need as they try to overcome this heartbreaking tragedy that has touched their lives," said Rabbi Yeres.

Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel (CYIR), which was established in 1990, works to support and endorse activities and programs that confront the modern day challenges that Israeli communities and their rabbis face.  CYIR focuses on bridging gaps and fostering networks among the factions within the greater Jewish community, heightening Jewish identity in Israel and the Diaspora, providing counseling for individuals in crisis.

With approximately 18,000 deaf people in Israel over and above the 200,000 who are hearing impaired, the need to educate Israel's deaf community in Judaism and Zionism is overwhelming.  A major communication gap often prevents the deaf in Israel from participating in Zionist, Judaic culture and ritual.  It is because of these reasons that the CYIR committed itself to raise awareness of Jewish identity among the deaf community by establishing the Judaic Heritage Program for Israel's Deaf and Hearing Impaired (JHPIDHI).

JHPIDHI fosters the Jewish identity of Israel's deaf and hearing impaired through intellectually stimulating courses and holiday events, transmitted via sign language, which increases their knowledge of Jewish heritage and Zionism.  The program also trains Rabbis and educators to communicate via sign language and to bridge the communication gap regarding Jewish heritage issues. Over 16,000 deaf and hearing impaired Israelis attend JHPIDHI programming throughout the year. JHPIDHI is funded in part by the Jewish Agency for Israel.