Posthumous Second Lieutenant György Kolozsvári, war hero was laid to rest with military honours in Tata, on 4th September.

The leaders of the MOD, the troops of the 8th rotation of the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) and the soldiers of the György Klapka Infantry Brigade bade the last farewell to the war hero at the funeral ceremony.

More than a thousand people accompanied Posthumous Second Lieutenant, war hero of the HDF on his last journey at Tata cemetery on Tuesday afternoon. The 37-year-old non-commissioned officer had suffered life-threatening injuries in Afghanistan in an ambush. He deceased at ‘Honvéd’ Hospital a week ago. The HDF 25 ’’György Klapka’’ Infantry Brigade and the soldiers of the 8th rotation of the PRT (Provincial Reconstruction Team) took part in the funeral. Minister of Defence Dr Csaba Hende, Parliamentary State Secretary Dr István Simicskó, Administrative State secretary Lajos Fodor and Lieutenant General Tibor Benkő, Chief of Defence Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces bade the final farewell to the dead war hero.

The military band was playing Hungarian folk songs at request of György Kolozsvári’s wife while the honour guard was taking place next to the coffin draped in national tricolor.

’’We are standing at the catafalque of a loved and respected comrade again. The worst has come, warrant officer György Kolozsvári succumbed in the hardest struggle of his life; he was defeated by death. He died as he lived: he lost his life while serving his beloved homeland, accomplishing his duties’’, Colonel Zsolt Sándor said.

Colonel Sándor emphasized: ’’György Kolozsvári served in Kosovo in 2000 and 2005; he completed the mission in Afghanistan in the second rotation of the PRT. Then he served in Bosnia Herzegovina in 2008 and in Afghanistan in the eighth rotation of PRT, again. He served 1015 days altogether, far from his homeland - for his homeland.

‘’ His humanity, exceptional military leadership talent, high requirements set for himself made him a dominant person of the infantry brigade,’’ the commander of the corps said. ‘’Demonstrating his preparedness, humanity and guidance he has set an everlasting memorial in a multinational environment in Afghanistan.’’ On behalf of the town of Tata mayor József Michl said farewell to the war hero: ’’ The number of the Hungarian soldiers in the Afghanistan peacekeeping mission does not seem to be significant. But the death of four soldiers makes every comparison meaningless. We have gone to the far Baghlan Province to maintain peace, to help build schools, roads and bridges. György Kolozsvári served for these noble aims together with his comrades. All of us are proud of him, all of us can be proud of our troops on Afghanistan mission.

Lieutenant Colonel Tamás Takács, Catholic field chaplain said farewell to the war hero quoting the words of the Gospel of John. “ For everything there is a reason…a time to be born and a time to die, a time to keep silence and a time to speak.” He said he would rather stay in silence because words did not come easy in that heart-breaking situation. Addressing the troops of the 8th rotation of the PRT he emphasized: ‘’You have not completed your mission in Afghanistan, yet. Your mission is to appoint somebody among the troops who would stand in front of Gyuri’s children and tell them what a good man their father was.”

Translated by Dóra Darnyik