Israel and Lebanon’s ceasefire officially took effect more than a month ago and was extended by another 45 days, but fighting with Hezbollah continues; families of the fallen say the north remains under fire
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon officially took effect on April 17, more than a month ago. Over the weekend, the United States informed Israelis that it had been extended by another 45 days.
But on the ground, there is little sign of a ceasefire. Fighting between the IDF and Hezbollah continues at high intensity, and during the so-called truce, seven IDF soldiers and one Israeli civilian have been killed.
These are their stories.
Master Sgt. Barak Kalfon
Exactly one month ago, Warrant Officer (res.) Barak Kalfon, 48, from the community of Adi in the Jezreel Valley, was killed in an incident in which reserve paratroopers were hit by an explosive device.
Kalfon is survived by his wife, Shamrit, and two daughters — Noga, 19, who is in a year of national service, and Mia, 17, an 11th-grade student.
A month after the family’s devastating loss, his mother, Sheri, said: “My husband Meir and I went to see his grave ahead of the memorial ceremony marking one month since he fell. Today we will hold a memorial ceremony for our beloved Barak with family and friends, and it still feels impossible to grasp. Barak was killed on the first day of the ceasefire, and now a month has passed since the terrible disaster that struck us. It is impossible to believe he is gone.”
“He was always the one who cared for everyone,” she added. “A big man with a smile, someone everyone relied on — at work, in the special field where he worked at Rafael, and in the army, where he was loved so much. We have heard so many stories about him over the past month. We still cannot process it. My husband, his two brothers and, of course, his wife Shamrit and his daughters, who were so close to him — this is a huge loss. Is this a ceasefire? We in the north are under fire all the time. Look at the residents of the north along the confrontation line — constantly under sirens and fire. How can anyone even declare another 45-day ceasefire now? Does that make sense to anyone?”
Sgt. First Class Lidor Porat
Sgt. First Class (res.) Lidor Porat, 31, was killed a month ago by an explosive device that also wounded nine others. Porat, a soldier in Battalion 7106 of the 769th Regional Brigade, is survived by his father, Avraham, his older brother Naor and his twin sister Inbal. His family marked 30 days since his death on Sunday.
Porat was born and raised in Ashdod’s District D and studied at the Bnei Akiva Neve Herzog yeshiva. He was an outstanding student and took an advanced physics program. After high school, he continued to a higher yeshiva in Beit El and later enlisted in the Paratroopers Brigade.
After his military service, he began studying electrical engineering at Ben-Gurion University. When his mother became seriously ill, he paused his studies to care for her until she died, then returned to complete his degree.
His close friend, Yagel Maimon, said: “After his mother died, it shook him deeply and he needed a lot of time to think. We traveled together in Vietnam. With all his righteousness, wisdom and seriousness, he also knew how to let go and enjoy life.
“October 7 caught us in a pastoral village. Suddenly I saw Lidor turn red and start shaking. He said his sister was in Sderot and he did not know what was happening. After a while, he managed to reach her and understood that his family was safe. He told me, ‘Come on, we’re going back to Israel.’ I told him, ‘Calm down, everything is OK, your family is safe.’ But he was determined to find a flight home, and within three days we were on one. The next day he had already reported for reserve duty. He even went without a bag and asked me to arrange underwear and clothes for him. He was an amazing friend. He loved the people of Israel, and we will not forget him.”
Sgt. Idan Fooks
Sgt. Idan Fooks, 19, was killed by an explosive drone near the village of Taybeh in southern Lebanon.
His mother, Meital Fooks, said through her pain: “You need to look at pictures of Idan and see from his eyes and his light who he was. So much kindness and desire to do good. We knew what kind of child we had, but we did not know just how much — and we heard amazing stories about him during the shiva. People came here who had been bullied as children, and Idan had helped them. In gym class, for example, he would take the child no one wanted when teams were picked.”
Speaking about the family’s loss, she said: “It is not easy. Idan was my heart and all of our hearts. There is no way to deal with this. We are surrounded by many angels he sent us — the wonderful people of Israel who lift us up. Every morning I look at his last picture and tell myself, ‘How can I fall?’ Yes, I cry, but I tell his story and hope every person will do one good deed in his memory. That gives us the strength to feel he is here.”
“I did not feel there was a ceasefire,” she added. “They were inside and fighting. Every morning I woke up to a message that they were going out on an operation, and every evening to a message that everything was OK. What ceasefire? Our children are fighting. The fact that this is being silenced is incomprehensible to me. Our children are inside, and suddenly I received a message that I no longer have a child.”
Amer Hujeirat
Amer Hujeirat, a resident of Shefa-Amr who worked for a contracting company carrying out engineering work for the Defense Ministry, was killed by an explosive drone. His 19-year-old son was lightly wounded by shrapnel.
“It is very hard to see your father killed before your eyes. It shook me,” his son said. “We reached the border and entered the area to work. We handed our phones over to the IDF and were supposed to receive radios so we could stay in constant contact with the army, but we were told there was no need and that a tank would escort us closely and protect us.”
“The tank did escort us, but after five minutes it turned around and moved away. We continued working, and an hour and a half later it was no longer around us. We saw it far away, behind a house. We were alone. I climbed onto the engineering vehicle and suddenly saw a small, fast drone behind the excavator. It was flying low and focusing its camera on us. I got scared and jumped off the vehicle immediately. It came to attack me. I ran, and my father ran, but the drone chased him and the explosive charge hit him and detonated. When we entered, they promised us the tank would stay to secure us — not that it would leave and hide.”
Sgt. Liem Ben Hamo
Sgt. Liem Ben Hamo, 19, from Herzliya, a soldier in the Golani Brigade’s 13th Battalion, was killed by an explosive drone near the village of Qantara in southern Lebanon.
His mother, Galit, said: “He was a special child. A good student. I was afraid for him. I no longer have parents or siblings. I tried to lower his profile, but he wanted to be in Golani, in Golani’s 13th Battalion, and that is what he got.”
His uncle, Shlomi, added: “It is hard for me to speak about him in the past tense. Liem was an outstanding student, a young man with values and a sense of humor. Liem volunteered to serve in Golani. He followed my son, who also served in Golani. This is a terrible disaster.”
Staff Sgt. Negev Dagan
Staff Sgt. Negev Dagan, 20, from Moshav Dekel in the northwestern Negev, a soldier in the Golani Brigade’s 12th Battalion, was killed by a mortar shell fired at troops in the Litani area.
His friend Matan Peretz said: “I knew Negev from age zero. I was with him everywhere — even this past weekend, before it happened. Negev was a good friend, a good kid, someone you cannot really describe in words. He wanted to fulfill so many dreams, and in one moment it ended.”
“Negev had been in places, and suddenly this happened. We were in shock,” Matan added. “He used to come here and say it was not scary and that ‘we are going in all the way.’ But this past weekend, he said this entry was going to be frightening.”
Warrant Officer (res.) Alexander Glovanyov
Warrant Officer (res.) Alexander Glovanyov, 47, was killed by an explosive drone near the border.
His widow, Marina, spoke about coping with the loss. “It has been a week since I have been living alone, and it is hard. Luckily there are many friends and neighbors here helping me,” she said.
“I manage all the technical things, but the joy has disappeared from my life, and it is very hard when raising a young girl,” she added. “I think there is no ceasefire. For me, here in the center, we do not see what is happening on the Lebanon border, and it is hard for us to understand what is happening there.”
His mother, Polina, said in pain: “Alexander was a very good person. He was my only son. I have no one now. He had good hands. He was an athlete. We came to Israel in 1996. They told us it happened at the border, that he was at the base. We spoke the day before yesterday for the last time. I was afraid. I was in touch with him, and he said everything was OK.”
Capt. Maoz Israel Recanati
Capt. Maoz Israel Recanati, a platoon commander in the Golani Brigade’s 12th Battalion, fell in battle in southern Lebanon. He was 24. Recanati was killed by an explosive drone launched at troops last Friday.
Recanati was a graduate of the sixth-year program at the Itamar higher yeshiva. He is survived by his parents, six siblings and his fiancée, Roni, whom he was supposed to marry next month.
Rabbi Daniel Luntzer, the rabbi of Itamar, eulogized him at the funeral: “The entire nation accompanies you to burial. Exactly one week before you ascended heavenward in battle, last Friday, you were at my home with Roni, your fiancée. You registered for marriage, and you went up among the holy and pure.”
Roni said goodbye to him at the funeral.
“The first time we met, the first thing I noticed was your kind and beautiful eyes. I fell into them again and again. Everyone said you had kind eyes,” she said. “Once you asked if I was angry, and I said I could not be angry at you. Maoz, everyone who met you for the first time was moved by your quietness, which said so much about you. I wanted you to come to my bridal chair and smile at me. I wanted you to be a father. You could have been the perfect father.”
“I love you so much,” she added. “I am sorry if I did anything wrong. I am sorry. My whole body hurts. We are strong and we will continue to live — we will love the people the way you would have wanted. Rest in peace. You need to rest. You worked so hard. Let yourself rest. I love you very much and miss you.”