Israeli actor Idan Amedi at a press conference Wednesday, Jan. 24, after being released from the hospital. Source: Twitter/X

Idan Amedi, an actor on the hit Israeli TV series “Fauda,” was released from the hospital on Thursday, more than two weeks after he was seriously injured in the Gaza Strip during the war against Hamas terrorists.

“I have a long recovery ahead of me, I was seriously injured. The very fact that I’m standing in front of you is a miracle,” the actor and acclaimed singer said at a press conference at the Sheba Medical Center in central Israel. “A shrapnel that entered my body in the throat miraculously didn’t damage the spinal cord. My body and soul are indeed damaged, but my spirit is stronger than ever. I will return to create, to sing, I will return to play,” he said.

Amedi, who plays an elite soldier named Sagi in the critically acclaimed Israeli series, was among the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who jumped into service on October 7, after Hamas terrorists stormed southern Israel, massacring 1,200 and taking hostage over 240. A reservist in the combat engineering corps, he was reported in serious condition on January 9 in fighting in the southern Gaza Strip.

At the time, his father said Amedi was stable but urged the public to pray from his son’s recovery. Well wishes for Amedi came from all sectors of Israeli society, including his co-stars on the series.

Amedi had posted videos of his time in Gaza, telling his fans in a social media post, “I am ready not to perform or sing a song for a year. We must not abandon the citizens of the south and the north. We will not stop fighting [until] the elimination of Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.”

“The Israeli people are the strongest people in the world.” Israeli singer-songwriter and actor Idan Amedi, who was injured in #Gaza 17 days ago while heroically defending the people of #Israel, sends a powerful message as he is set to be released from the hospital. Am Yisrael… pic.twitter.com/wVwlYGjqjT

— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) January 25, 2024

At the press conference on Thursday, Amedi added, “My spirit is strong thanks to the people of Israel who wrapped me in love, this thing is not taken for granted. It will also take me time to contain the amount of love I received, thank you all.”

He also sent condolences to those who lost family members: “Sending a hug to the bereaved families, I know there are no words that will comfort the heart, it is important to me that you know that the sons and daughters are my heroes until the end of my days. In certain moments we allowed ourselves to cry together, they meant a lot.”

Amedi described the moment when he was injured: “It’s the kind of moment where you just think you want to live, there’s not much more. At the moment of the explosion, after I landed on the ground, the only thing was to signal that I was alive and that they would come and take care of me. You think about your home, your family … We were already at the end of the mission, and a few hours before we entered, another ammunition depot exploded there. I made sure where all the fighters were, and then quite by surprise the explosion happened.”

The cause of the explosion is not currently known, but two of his fellow soldiers died during the blast. In tears, he honored his fallen comrades: “The late Major General Gabriel Blum and the late Major General Akiva Yasinski. Gavri was a professional fighter, an inquisitive and strong person. I had the privilege of knowing him in the war and fighting alongside him. He was a beloved person. Akiva and I have known each other since the age of 19. We were accepted together into the patrol team, we were trained together, we fought together in many operations and in the various wars.”

Remorseful, he sought to take blame for their deaths, saying to their families and the fallen, “I’m sorry I didn’t live up to my mission as a commander to return them home safely, this pain will accompany me like a sign of Cain until my last day.”

Amedi then spoke of the future: “We have a mission as a nation to remain united, not to fall apart. To prove to those who sacrificed their lives for us that their sacrifice was not in vain … Although I was seriously injured, my spirit is strong. I will return to sing and act, and with God’s help, I will return to fight for my country. The Israelis are the strongest in the world, when we are united we are invincible. It will take time but we will win this war, we have no other choice. Thank you all for coming, the nation of Israel lives.”