Roi Shalev, 30, the partner of Mapal Adam, who was killed in the Hamas massacre at the Nova music festival on Oct. 7, 2023, died by suicide Friday night near Poleg Beach in Netanya, police said.
Fire and Rescue Service teams were called to Route 2 near the Odim interchange after reports of a vehicle on fire. During firefighting operations, crews discovered Shalev’s body inside the burning car. Medical personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. Police said early findings indicate that Shalev took his own life.
The scene of the incident near Natanya
Shalev, a resident of Nitzanei Oz and originally from Kfar Yona, was a survivor of the Nova festival massacre, in which Hamas gunmen killed more than 360 people near Re’im in southern Israel. He was wounded by gunfire in the attack, during which his partner, 27-year-old Mapal Adam — the sister of television personality Maayan Adam — was murdered.
Shortly before his death, Shalev posted a message on social media in which he wrote that he “couldn’t go on anymore” and asked for forgiveness, prompting deep concern among his family and friends. He was later seen at a gas station on Route 57, several kilometers from his home, filling a jerrycan with fuel.
Dozens of friends arrived at the scene after news of his death spread, including DJ Omri Sasi, one of the Nova festival organizers who had joined the search for him. “Everyone was worried and afraid he might hurt himself—now we’re all in shock,” one friend said.
Shalev’s mother died by suicide shortly after the Oct. 7 attacks. Friends said he had struggled to cope with the trauma and loss ever since. “We searched everywhere, hoping to find him,” one acquaintance said. Earlier Friday, members of the Adam family visited Mapal’s grave to mark one year since the massacre. Relatives said Shalev had never recovered from her death.
In a November 2023 interview, Shalev described living with grief and trying to find ways to honor Mapal’s memory. “I hold up the stick with the sunflower as high as I can, feeling like I’m reaching the sky,” he said. “Then suddenly, I think of Mapal—and I start crying, crying my heart out. And as I cry harder, I feel like Mapal is reaching out her hand from the heavens.”
Maayan Adam has previously spoken about the close bond she shared with Shalev after her sister’s death. “He has my back for life. I’ll always love him, help him, and support him,” she told Yedioth Ahronoth last year. “Sometimes I find comfort knowing she died in the arms of the man who loved her.”
Police said the investigation has concluded that no one else was involved in Shalev’s death.