Emotional Moment: Rabbi Boaz Saluk, Wounded in Lebanon, Celebrates His Son’s Bar Mitzvah

Rabbi Boaz Saluk got out of his bed at Rambam Hospital in Haifa to celebrate his son Noam Mordechai’s bar mitzvah, despite his severe injuries. Watch: Rabbi Boaz Saluk took part in his son’s bar mitzvah. Photo: Netanel Ben Harush.

Moving scenes were recorded at “Beit HaEven” at Rambam Hospital in Haifa, where the bar mitzvah was held for Noam Mordechai Saluk, whose father, Rabbi Boaz, was seriously wounded by an explosive drone strike in Lebanon. The father got out of his bed and, with the help of a wheelchair, joined the celebration and even “danced” in the chair to delight the bar mitzvah boy, as the boy’s friends applauded the two.

Rabbi Boaz Saluk with his son. Photo: Netanel Ben Harush.

Rabbi Saluk spoke with Channel 7 in the past day from the hospital and recounted the miraculous moments that kept him alive. “I was wounded in various parts of my body. I needed ten units of blood. What saved me was the vest our team commander bought for us thanks to donations, which prevented the shrapnel from penetrating the vital organs,” Rabbi Saluk says of the moment he was hit.

The major drama on the ground unfolded within just seconds, long minutes of tension in which Rabbi Saluk was required to make fateful decisions under a direct and focused threat. He describes in detail the dynamics of the incident, from the moment he noticed the explosive drone entering the force’s area to the stage when the device locked onto him personally and began making threatening, sophisticated movements intended to maximize the damage and casualties among the fighters.

“Everything happened in about 40 seconds. The moment I see the drone lock onto me, I understand that it is a device trying to kill me. It locks onto me and moves in the air like a cobra. I’m looking for where to escape and understand that its operator wants me to be near other soldiers,” Saluk recounts.

Based on that conclusion, he did not run, as instinct would suggest, toward the shelter where his comrades were. In a split-second decision, he decided to try to hit the explosive drone.

“I cocked my weapon, fired at it, and then it veered off course slightly and simply dropped toward me. I tried to move a little to reduce the impact and did succeed in sparing the right side of my body from a more severe injury.”

He draws strength, among other things, from the steady stream of visitors. “I thank the Holy One, blessed be He, and the people of Israel, who embrace me in a huge hug and give me strength and power. There is no one like this nation, no one like the people around me, for a moment I am not alone.”