Staff Sergeant Amit Ben Yigal was killed on Tuesday after an Arab terrorist dropped a bolder on his head from a high up location in the Arab village of Yabad near Jenin in the Samaria region. Despite wearing a helmet, the bolder still proved to be fatal.
A search is on for the stone-thrower and the attack is being investigated by the IDF. The 20-year old Ben Yigal was promoted to staff sergeant posthumously.
The Army reports that at about 4:00 AM, Ben Yigal’s special forces unit of the Golani brigade entered Yabad to arrest four Arab terrorists accused of belonging to a terror organization and throwing stones. Following the incident, Ben Yigal was evacuated to Rambam hospital in Haifa where he succumbed to his wounds.
Baruch Ben Yigal, Amit’s father told Kann News: “Two officers came knocking on my door at 6:00 AM. I was sure they had the wrong address. They said that Amit was hit. I asked if he was injured. Then they asked that I take a seat. A disaster fell upon me. He is my only son, I have nothing besides him. My entire life revolved around him. Last week, I went to Jenin to bring him cake. He hasn’t been home for 50 days due to the coronavirus crisis.
In a statement, Defense minister Naftali Bennett vowed to “catch the evil terrorists responsible for his death and settle the score with them.”
A similar incident happened almost exactly two years ago in May 2018 when IDF troop Ronen Lubarsky Hy”d was killed when a stone slab was dropped onto his head from atop a building near Ramallah.
The 20-year-old Israeli sergeant succumbed to his injuries two days later.
