Son Recounts Father's Final Moments During Deadly Terror Attack

Yoav Shakron, the 16-year-old son of Natanel Shakron who was killed in a terror attack in the Benjamin region on the eve of Yom Kippur, described the horrific moments his father died before his eyes in an interview with Kan News.

"He yelled 'run' and saved my life," Yoav recounted. The family had gone to the Ein Ri'a spring to immerse themselves before Yom Kippur. As they were getting into their car in the parking lot, a terrorist suddenly attacked. Yoav recalled his father shouting, "Yoav, there's a terrorist here" or "Yoav, it's an attack," followed by "Run."

Yoav turned and saw the terrorist shooting directly at his father. He described scrambling between the seats, opening the car door, and fleeing as the terrorist continued to shoot at him. He managed to hide in bushes across the road until soldiers arrived. After the soldiers fired shots, Yoav returned to the car and saw his father had succumbed to his wounds.

He explained that other visitors at the spring, about a minute's walk away, did not initially notice the attack. Yoav described the recent Yom Kippur as particularly difficult, stating, "Suddenly you understand the true meaning of the Day of Judgment." He fondly remembered his father, a 48-year-old father of six and an information systems analyst, as someone who always helped him and urged people to remember his smile.

Natanel Shakron was buried in the settlement of Ali Zahav in Samaria. At the funeral, Yoav thanked his father for saving him. His widow, Merav, a computer science doctor and lecturer at Ariel University, also spoke of her husband's heroism in warning their son. The commander of the Central Command, Maj. Gen. Avi Blot, and other officials were present. Shomron Regional Council head Yossi Dagan told Yoav that his father's actions not only saved him but potentially others, as the terrorist pursued Yoav. The family also shared that Natanel's grandfather was murdered outside a synagogue in Algeria about 70 years ago.