SHTULA, Upper Galilee — One thundering boom followed another just outside the home of Ora Hatan in her village high in the hills along the Israel-Lebanon border last Sunday afternoon.

But Hatan, 62, was too busy to flinch.

She was supervising her 16-year-old nephew, Daniel, as he prepared dozens of portions of schnitzel — all while frying eggplant, unpacking a dozen bags of groceries, offering tea and homemade pastries to a guest, and speaking to a well-wisher congratulating her on being one of the 12 people chosen to light a torch at the 78th Independence Day celebration in Jerusalem on April 21.

Hatan said that MK Miri Regev called her on the phone to tell her she was chosen as a “symbol of determination.” That sentiment was echoed by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who visited Hatan’s house recently and said that her “resilience has strengthened the entire nation.”

Throughout the war that began on October 8, 2023, when the Iranian proxy terror group Hezbollah and allied Lebanese groups began firing into Israel in solidarity with Hamas and its bloody invasion of the south a day earlier, Hatan never left the village, even as the government evacuated Shtula along with some 60,000 residents from 32 communities in northern Israel.

She likewise remained at her post during the recent conflict, which is currently on pause during a ceasefire imposed by US President Donald Trump.

Known for her Kurdish delicacies, Hatan decided in 2023 that if she couldn’t make meals for visitors, she could cook for Israeli forces stationed in the area.

And so she did, taking it upon herself to cook for hundreds, if not thousands, of soldiers. Even after her family’s restaurant was destroyed by Hezbollah rocket fire in 2024, Hatan went on cooking.

On the day The Times of Israel visited, Hatan was cooking schnitzel and French fries for some troops.

“I usually cook them kubbeh soup, stuffed chicken, or spicy fish, but they said they hadn’t eaten schnitzel since before Passover, so that’s what I’ll make to pamper them,” Hatan said.

Speaking of the upcoming........

© The Times of Israel