Childhood Friends Who Grew Up Next Door Killed in Gaza War

Two childhood friends from the small northern Israeli town of Har Halutz, Itay Saadon and Nadav Kali, both killed in the Gaza war, grew up living across the street from each other. Nadav Kali, a reservist, was killed this week in a drone explosion in Gaza along with another soldier, Ofek Moalem. He was buried near his friend Itay Saadon, who fell in November 2023 during a battle in the northern Gaza Strip.

Lihat Saadon, Itay's mother, shared childhood photos of the two boys on social media, expressing her disbelief and grief. "We mothers used to sit on the curb chatting, today I meet them mostly at the cemetery," she wrote, recalling their shared childhood on Har Halutz's "Mountain Street," where their houses faced each other and children played freely. She described neighborhood traditions like Lag B'Omer bonfires, first-grade ceremonies, and children's markets.

Saadon recounted how the street, once filled with the sounds of children playing, emptied as they grew up. Itay Saadon, who served as a tank commander and was 21 when he died, had expressed a desire to return to Har Halutz to raise his own children. "But Itay is dead, and now Nadav is dead too," his mother lamented. "And I meet with the mothers mostly at the cemetery."

Friends of Nadav Kali, who was 22 and served in a reserve battalion, remembered him as a "true warrior at heart" and a strong, loyal person. They recalled long conversations that ranged from trivial matters to science and the stars, and emphasized his constant presence in their lives. They will remember his "huge smile" and his golden nature.