'Fauda' star Idan Amedi recounts Gaza blast

By Sveta Listratov

(JNS) - Israeli actor-singer-songwriter Idan Amedi, best known for starring in the hit Netflix show "Fauda," recounted to reporters on Thursday his experience fighting in Gaza and the blast that had him hospitalized for over two weeks.

"We are dealing with an enemy that doesn't care about anything. This is a just war and the enemy we are facing is beyond Hamas, we have found weapons in schools, assorted institutions and private homes. The world needs to know that," said Amedi, who was released from the Medical Center in Ramat Gan, where doctors had kept him in an unconscious state and on a ventilator.

The 35-year-old Amedi was a reservist in the Combat Engineering Corps. An explosion in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza killed six soldiers and wounded Amedi and several other reservists on Jan. 9.

With his hands bandaged and struggling with pain, Amedi, recalled the moments of the blast.

"In this specific operation, there were three teams of us that were supposed to destroy several tunnel shafts. Those tunnels are many meters deep and the weapons that were found there, it all had news value and that's why we brought the reporters to document it. Another weapons warehouse was found nearby and we were ordered to destroy it as well," he said.

"We were set to go, and I made sure where all my fighters were and then suddenly the explosion happened. The first thought was that a terrorist had initiated an explosion. But the initial investigation shows something else. I will look into it soon."

The blast may have been the result of an accident created by the soldiers; the Israel Defense Forces is investigating.

"It's moments like these that you only think how much you want to live," Amedi said. "As I landed on the ground after the explosion, I signaled with my hand that I was alive so that my teammates would come and take care of me. I was laying there thinking about home, about my family, and how much I wanted to return to them alive."

Amedi plays agent Sagi Tzur in the drama about an elite undercover team trying to track down a notorious Palestinian terrorist. He joined the cast in 2017.

Asked how his rehabilitation would affect the filming of "Fauda," which was renewed for its fifth season, he said, "The creators are already working to adapt the script to our current reality. With God's help, I will be back in the series next season."

Amedi is also a popular singer and has recorded five albums since 2011. His most popular song, "A Warrior's Pain," about the post-traumatic experiences of a soldier returning from war, was one of Israel's most popular songs in 2010.

He lives in Jerusalem with his wife and two children.