Shirel Abukarat had always wanted to serve as a Border Police officer, her friends and relatives said on Monday.
"She was filled with joy when she told she was accepted," her school principal said as she mentioned that her former student had not even had time to collect her diploma. A memorial was set up in her school.
Shirel Abukarat and Yezen Falah were murdered in a terror attack in the northern city of Hadera on Sunday.
Shirel's family immigrated to Israel from France in 2006 and settled in Netanya.
"We escaped from France to Israel to be safe," Abukarat's mother said. "I wanted to give them [her children] a good life and security."
Abukarat's uncle Moshe told Ynet in an interview that his niece was a joyful girl.
3 View gallery
Shirel Abukarat and Yezen Falah in a photo taken a few hours before their murder in a terror attack on Sunday
(Photo: Border Police)
"She was all heart, Israel-loving, a brilliant student," he said. "Everything she wanted to achieve, she achieved and was an outstanding soldier. At the end of her basic training, she received her commander's officer badge. She really loved the Border Police."
"As far as I know from the Border Police commanders that were here yesterday, Shirel and her fellow officers were waiting for a bus [when the terrorists struck] and were caught off guard, and when she tried to get up and run, she stumbled. When she stumbled, the vile man got her at point-blank range."
Moshe said Shirel and her family moved to Israel from France out of strong Zionist sentiment. "We weren't deprived of anything in France. We are a very Zionist family," he said.
"This is probably what we were destined to... I just hope that all the higher-ups will finally start to understand who we are dealing with. We have the best security forces in the world. But when two brainwashed, extreme terrorists, suddenly decide to get up one evening in the name of Islam or the Islamic State..." Moshe said, struggling through tears to finish his sentence.
"We are strong, we'll manage, we'll overcome because we don't have a choice. We can't allow ourselves to be weak. We won't let them defeat us. We'll cry, we'll be sad and it won't be easy," he said.
Shirel Abukarat was laid to rest Monday evening in the cemetery in Netanya.