Wife Says Final Goodbye to IDF Battalion Commander Killed in Southern Lebanon

Ariel Biton Ben Shimhon, the wife of Lt. Col. Dor Gedalya Ben Shimhon, commander of the IDF Armored Corps 52nd Battalion in the 401st Brigade, published a deeply personal farewell post on Saturday after he was killed in southern Lebanon.

In the post, she wrote that he gave her seven years of “true love,” partnership and family life, and left behind their two daughters. She said, “I know you would not have wanted to die any other way,” and called him “the commander I wish for every IDF soldier at this time.”

She recalled how their relationship began eight years ago during a military commanders course, after he gave an investigation briefing on a road accident. She described their courtship, engagement in a kibbutz with “the most beautiful view,” and their marriage, joking about his shorts and Teva sandals. She said he was a “people person” and a “mission commander,” whose dedication and intelligence served Israel well.

Biton Ben Shimhon also wrote about the difficulty of being part of a military family, saying she spent only a few months with him in total but seven years of “the best years” of her life. She said their daughters will know who he was, mentioned their older daughter Ayala asking for him to come back and needing a birthday gift for her third birthday, and said younger daughter Gaia had already made the usual messes he had not yet had time to see. She ended by quoting her wedding vows, saying, “I not only want you in my life, I need you in my life,” and signed off, “I love you forever. End.”