| Ofakim
Ofakim is located 24 km northwest of Be'er Sheva in a green and pastoral setting nestled among the area's kibbutzim and moshavim. It was founded on April 19, 1955 and was granted municipal status on its fortieth anniversary.
The city is distinguished by its warm and embracing community, communal atmosphere and sense of belonging and is surrounded by natural spaces, parks and agricultural areas. It is situated at the center of the western Negev, the country's most fertile area for field crops and advanced agriculture. Through its innovative solutions to agricultural challenges, Ofakim attracts start-up companies, academic institutions, researchers and entrepreneurs to settle in the area and influence the future of Israel and the world.
Events of October 7
Around 7:00 am, 22 terrorists infiltrated the city of Ofakim. They arrived in two vehicles loaded with rifles, hundreds of hand grenades and dozens of RPG rockets, explosive devices and landmines, planning to take over the city. They came in through the city's western entrance, making their way to the Mishor HaGefen neighborhood, where they carried out brutal and horrific acts of murder. Dozens of citizens hid in buildings and many people on the street were murdered. The terrorists began murdering anyone they saw on the streets or in automobiles. They even attempted to break into several homes, tossing dozens of hand grenades and firing RPG rockets.
Already during the first minutes of the onslaught, police officers, SWAT teams, civilians armed with personal weapons and soldiers on leave advanced toward the source of the gunfire, engaging the terrorists in battle. By 10:00 am, after about three hours had passed, most of the terrorists had been killed. Nearly twenty armed civilians, police officers and soldiers were killed while fighting the terrorists.
A fierce battle took place in the Mishor HaGefen neighborhood, leaving dozens killed and many wounded. Were it not for the heroic response of the neighborhood residents together with the security forces, the losses in Ofakim would have been of much greater magnitude. For years a sculpture bearing the words "A City of People" has stood at the entrance to the city. After October 7, we can certainly say that Ofakim is "A City of Heroes."
During the battles in Ofakim, 34 civilians, eight police officers and five soldiers were murdered. In the surprise attack, 48 residents of the city were killed, some during the battle and others elsewhere in the Negev.
"He just went out to the car and spent five hours saving lives."
On the morning of the Simchat Torah holiday, when the sirens continued to wail and the shooting approached, Liad Ohana, chief paramedic at United Hatzalah (community-based volunteer emergency medical services organization) and a resident of Ofakim, realized that he had to go out into the field. He led his family into the security room, telling his wife that he was just going out to the car to get his protective vest and helmet. He was gone for five hours.
While the city was under attack and the police officers were battling for their lives, Liad treated dozens of injured. "You have to detach yourself from your emotions and operate on automatic pilot—otherwise you will freeze. Saving lives is what I know how to do." Even after he returned home, the quiet did not last. That very night he was called up under Emergency Order 8 and set out to battle, this time as a soldier.
"Sometimes I entertained the thought that maybe I don't need to be doing what I'm doing, but I understand there's no chance I won't. This is our imperative. This is my generation's war. You feel in your guts that being there first means saving lives."
"We threw a unicorn birthday party for Mielle – I can't believe we're still here."
On the morning of October 7, Amit Gur (26), a member of the Israel Border Police, and her husband Roy Gur (29), a detective at the Ofakim Police Station, were awakened by the sound of sirens. Roy rushed out to fight in Ofakim, while Amit waited for Mielle's grandfather to arrive and then joined the battle in the Eshkol area, together with Officer Yehuda Kedar of blessed memory.
Upon arriving at the Magen Junction, they encountered terrorists. After Yehuda neutralized the first terrorist and Amit killed the second one, they were hit by an RPG. Despite their injuries, the two continued to fight. In another encounter with terrorists close to Re'im, Amit was shot in her arm and another officer with them was hit in the shoulder. Amit stopped the bleeding using one hand and fired a shot into the air with the other hand to call for evacuation. Only when she reached the hospital did she learn that Yehuda had been killed.
"We threw a unicorn birthday party for Mielle. I wept when I read the birthday greetings. The very fact that we are here is a miracle."
"I fought at the doorstep of my home."
On Saturday morning Lt. Col. Yarden Shukron Yifrah, her husband and their children were awakened by sirens in their home in Ofakim. Shukron Yifrah quickly led her family into the security room — and rushed out to battle.
As commander of the Shachar Battalion of the Homefront Command's Search and Rescue Division, Shukron Yifrah and her soldiers were urgently deployed to the Urim base following reports of a terrorist infiltration. There she engaged in three battles and neutralized three terrorists.
"From there I returned to Ofakim and began engaging in combat right at the doorstep of my home." Together with soldiers from the anti-terrorism unit, Yifrah moved from house to house to clear the city of terrorists. They continued until 2:00 AM – when the last terrorists, who had barricaded themselves in the home of Rachel and David Edri, were neutralized. On that day Lt. Col. Shukron Yifrah saved the lives of dozens of citizens.
Stories of Heroism
