Amit Ben Yigal

Staff Sgt. Amit Ben Yigal | A combat soldier in the Golani Reconnaissance Battalion | Fell on the 12th of May, 2020

“Amit was an only child. Therefore, he was given the option not to enlist into a combat unit. I hoped he would choose not to, yet when he went on his school trip to Poland and visited the camps, he called me and said something I will never forget:

‘Dad, you’re the son of a Holocaust survivor. Your dad didn’t have an army to protect him. Today, now that our people have a country, I want to do everything I can to protect it at all costs. I want to enlist into the Golani Brigade.’

When he returned home, we negotiated for two months about this. I was scared. Yet, in the end, I decided to allow him to enlist into a combat unit. Eight months before Amit was killed, he met his girlfriend, Osher, a soldier herself. I took great pride in seeing this beautiful couple wearing IDF uniforms. One of the only things that gave me some comfort in losing my child is knowing that Amit fell while he was in love and was loved. He loved her so much, and she loved him back. They were a match made in heaven.

On the 12th of May 2020, Amit’s squad embarked on an operational activity to detain terror suspects in the village of Yaabad in Judea and Samaria. During the operation, Amit was struck by a rock hurled from a building after the roundup had been completed. He was evacuated by helicopter to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his wounds.

Since Amit fell, we as his family decided to make it our life’s mission to commemorate our beloved child. The entire nation has joined us in this mission.

Today, there are 23 children named after Amit. There is a small forest of carob trees planted by volunteers in Northern Israel. Next to Amit’s grave, we planted an olive tree, the tree of peace. Amit was a child of peace.

Amit was a hero, and he died as a hero. He will never be forgotten.”

-Baruch Ben Yigal, Amit’s father