Five IDF soldiers were killed in Lebanon over the weekend in two separate incidents.
Four soldiers were killed early Friday while fighting in southern Lebanon when their tank was hit.
Commander of the 52nd Battalion, 401st Brigade Lt.-Col. Dor Gedalia Ben Simhon, 32, from Beit Hashita, and St.-Sgt. Yoav Klein, 21, from Herzliya, were among the fallen troops.
The names of the other two soldiers had not been published as of press time.
In a separate incident, a Hezbollah attack also killed Sgt. First Class Nir Ben Ari, 21, from Kerem Maharal, who served with the Maglan Unit, Commando Brigade.
A suspicious object struck a Battalion 52 tank operating alongside troops from the Givati Brigade, who were in the area of the village of Tebnit, south of Nabatiya, the IDF said.
Ben Simhon had taken over command of Battalion 52 from Lt. Col. “Y.” on April 20 after the latter was seriously wounded in southern Lebanon.
Responses to Lt. Col. Ben-Simhon’s death
Ben Simhon was married and the father of two daughters.
He came from a family of combat soldiers. He and four of his brothers enlisted in the 401st Brigade, while another brother enlisted in the Golani Brigade.
His wife serves as a combat officer in the Combat Intelligence Collection and Border Defense Corps.
Kibbutz Beit Hashita said that “when the need arose, Lt.-Col. Dor stepped up and accepted command of the battalion during some of the most difficult moments of the fighting.”
They described him as a determined and responsible leader who was always willing to step up to a challenge.
The Gilboa Regional Council also sent its condolences.
“The Gilboa Regional Council bows its head, grieves, and salutes upon the fall in battle of Lt.-Col. Dor Ben Simhon, commander of the 52nd Battalion of the 401st Brigade, who fell tonight in combat on the frontline along with three of his tank crew members.”
They described him as having “led his fighters with determination, supreme courage, and extraordinary responsibility.”
Defense Minister Israel Katz praised the fallen soldiers.
“Dor was a courageous, determined, and dedicated commander who fulfilled senior roles in the northern sector during the campaign and led his soldiers on the battlefield against our enemies. Their loss is a heavy blow to the IDF, the defense establishment, and the State of Israel as a whole.”
Lapid shares condolences with fallen soldiers’ families
Opposition leader Yair Lapid also reacted to the four soldiers’ deaths, mourning their loss and expressing condolences to their families.
“The heart breaks with the news,” he wrote on X/Twitter. “Endless pain. I share in the family’s grief from the depths of my heart. May their memory be blessed.”
Democrats MK Gilad Kariv also mourned the fallen soldiers.
“The heroism of the fighters and our eternal debt to them compel us to also say things as they are.
“The role of the IDF is to win on the battlefield. The role of the government is to translate the IDF’s strength into diplomatic moves that will prevent the need to return to the battlefield time and again,” he said.
“We owe this to the soldiers and commanders, to the children and grandchildren of us all.”
