Brother of fallen soldier awarded Presidential Medal of Excellence
Lt. Col. (res.) Noam Ben Ari awarded Presidential Medal of Excellence on Tuesday; 'I personally am still adjusting to being a bereaved brother,' says Noam, whose brother Hagai Ben Ari was last IDF soldier killed during Protective Edge. 'I hope the ceremony brought strength to the parents.'
Lt. Col. (res.) Noam Ben Ari, the brother of Hagai Ben Ari, who was the last IDF soldier to be killed during Operation Protective Edge, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Excellence on Tuesday, as part of President Reuven Rivlin's annual award ceremony for reserves soldiers. It was the infantry regiment at the IDF's officers' camp, over which Ben Ari commands, which received the medal for its work.
Maj. Hagai Ben Ari died last January, after receiving critical injuries during Protective Edge. "Mom and Dad were happy to come to the ceremony," his brother, Noam, said on Tuesday to Ynet. "I was surprised that the president spoke about Hagai, it planted me where I stood.
"It's a huge honor to be Hagai's brother, and I personally am still adjusting to being a bereaved brother. I hope the ceremony brought strength to the parents. I would have been proud to tell Hagai that my regiment won the Medal of Excellence," said Noam.
Ben Ari also spoke during the ceremony, touching on the symbolism that he sees in reserves units such as the one under his command. "There's been a lot of talk recently about the rifts that exist in our society, but those serving in the reserves prove that our common ground is so much greater. Our units represent what is good and admirable, everything worth fighting for in this country. Together, because that is the only way. These units include all shades of society with their various opinions, all speaking and arguing, but together."
President Rivlin also spoke at the ceremony, saying, "These days, the heavy weight of reserves service is put upon less and less shoulders. Many do not perform reserves service, and with this wearing out of values as backdrop, the contribution and sacrifice that you, the representatives of those in the reserves units honored for their excellence, only grows larger."
Other reserves units honored for their excellence were the reserves commando units, the Judea and Samaria Infantry Regiment, the Central Command Rescue Regiment in the Haifa Region, the Medical Corps' Field Hospital Headquarters and more.
