Gaza War Survivor Recounts Hamas Attack and Combat Trauma
Translated & summarized from Srugim by baba
Shilo Algem, a student and soldier, recounted his experiences during the October 7th Hamas attack on Sderot, where he helped defend his yeshiva and witnessed graphic scenes. He later sustained injuries during combat in Rafah in May 2024 but returned to fighting. Algem has since written a book about his experiences and is giving lectures to share his story and insights from the war.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Shilo Algem described witnessing bodies on the ground during the October 7th Hamas attack on Sderot.
- Algem helped defend his yeshiva with other armed students while awaiting the army's arrival.
- He was injured by an RPG attack on his tank in Rafah in May 2024.
- Despite his injuries, Algem returned to combat in Rafah.
- Algem wrote a book about his wartime experiences and is now giving lectures.
- He lost friends during the war, including Sgt. Maj. Itay Fogel.
Shilo Algem, a student at the Sderot Hesder Yeshiva, described the harrowing events of October 7th, 2023, when Hamas terrorists attacked Israel. Algem was at the yeshiva, where he had been studying for about a year and a half before his army service, preparing to celebrate the holiday with friends. At 6:29 AM, the first air raid siren sounded, followed by reports of gunfire. Algem recounted how he and other armed students organized a defense for the yeshiva, which housed approximately 400 people, while waiting for the army's response. He took up a position overlooking the police station and witnessed horrific scenes, seeing "so many people, bodies on the floor" through his rifle's scope, unsure if they were police, terrorists, or civilians. He also expressed deep anxiety about the fate of his friends who had gone to confront the attackers.
Algem described the situation at the yeshiva as "apocalyptic chaos" with continuous gunfire throughout the day, and uncertainty about where the terrorists might emerge from. He noted that the army had contacted him, requesting his return to his base, but he was unable to leave Sderot. He admitted to not initially grasping the full scale of the October 7th attack, even thinking he would attend his brother's wedding that evening. It wasn't until his departure from Sderot around 3:40 PM, when he saw the darkened city with shuttered windows, heard ongoing gunfire and explosions, and observed uncollected bodies of terrorists, that the magnitude of the event began to sink in.
After joining his unit and undergoing further training, Algem entered Gaza. In May 2024, during the operation in Rafah, his tank was hit by a double RPG attack. Algem sustained shrapnel injuries to his left thigh and abdomen, as well as respiratory distress. He described the intense explosion and the feeling of metal entering his body. Despite the severe injury, he returned to combat in Rafah after about a month and a half, driven by a sense of duty and the need to support his comrades. He also spoke of the profound grief of losing friends during the war, including Sergeant Major Itay Fogel, who was killed by an anti-tank missile on the eve of Yom Kippur 5785, and three other friends who died when an explosive device detonated in Beit Hanoun.
During his time in the war, Algem wrote a book titled "We'll Meet in Dreams," partly on a UNRWA notebook. He has since begun giving lectures about his experiences, aiming to spread "the light of these people" and to explain the realities of combat to those who haven't experienced it, while also sharing coping mechanisms derived from his experiences.
