Lt. Col. G Named New Commander of IDF’s 52nd Battalion After Fatal Battle Loss

Two days after the death of Lt. Col. Dor Ben Simchon, the commander of Battalion 52, the IDF appointed a new battalion commander, Lt. Col. G. He is expected to assume the post in the coming days.

G began his military career in the 188th Armored Brigade, where he held a series of roles. When the war began, he served as operations officer in Fire Brigade 215. He later commanded the northern sector command post and fought in the Gaza Strip.

Over the past year, he also established the Dead Sea command post, known as Battalion 843. The appointment comes as the battalion’s command has changed repeatedly since the war started.

Ben Simchon is the fifth commander of Battalion 52 since the outbreak of the war. Lt. Col. Daniel Ella led the unit at the start of the fighting until he was wounded in Rafah. He was replaced by Yehuda Shalev, who was also seriously wounded in Jabaliya in October 2024, in the incident in which Brigade Commander Col. Ehsan Daxa was killed. The third commander, Or Yuel, was seriously wounded about two months ago in Lebanon, before Ben Simchon was killed in combat there.