Wounded Golani Fighter Recounts Near-Death Experience and Recovery
Translated & summarized from Srugim by baba
Yochai Badlov, a severely wounded Golani fighter, returned to his yeshiva studies after a lengthy rehabilitation. He described his near-death experience in Gaza's Shuja'iyya, where he was hit by nine bullets and paralyzed from the neck down. Badlov expressed anger at the military's strategy and a desire for meaningful lives over mere peace. His friend Aharon Elkan rescued him under fire. Badlov's recovery taught him to balance rehabilitation goals with acceptance.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Yochai Badlov, a wounded Golani fighter, returned to his yeshiva studies after severe combat injuries.
- Badlov was hit by nine bullets in Gaza's Shuja'iyya, suffering paralysis from the neck down.
- He recounted a near-death experience, hearing soldiers shout "Badlov is dead!" as he prayed.
- Badlov expressed anger at military strategy and a desire for meaningful lives over passive peace.
- A friend, Aharon Elkan, rescued Badlov under heavy fire during the battle.
- His rehabilitation taught him to balance recovery goals with acceptance of his condition.
Yochai Badlov, a Golani Brigade fighter and student at the Hesder Yeshiva in Yerucham, has returned to his studies two and a half years after sustaining severe injuries in combat in Shuja'iyya. He shared his experience of injury and rehabilitation with fellow students, expressing a strong aversion to the phrase "thanks to them we can live in peace." Badlov stated, "My friends did not fall so that we could live here in peace. They fell so that we could live meaningful lives here." During the battle in which he was wounded, Badlov lost his battalion commander, Tomer Greenberg, and his commander, Roi Meladsi. He described returning to Shuja'iyya months later with conflicting feelings of a desire for revenge and fear, recalling the difficulty of the previous encounter. Badlov also spoke of his anger regarding the perceived ineffectiveness of military operations, likening them to a game of hide-and-seek where militants re-enter the area shortly after being cleared. He recounted the moment he was hit by nine bullets, sustaining injuries to his legs and abdomen, and a neck wound that caused paralysis from the neck down. Hearing a soldier shout "Badlov is dead!" led him to believe his end was near, prompting him to recite the Shema prayer and vow to dedicate all he had to charity if he survived. His friend, Aharon Elkan, risked his life to drag him to safety under fire. Despite initial difficulties in detecting a pulse and moments where medical teams believed he had died during evacuation, Badlov was eventually stabilized and airlifted to Soroka Hospital. The extensive rehabilitation process, which involved a year of intensive therapy, taught him the importance of finding a balance between striving for improvement and accepting his current state. Ultimately, Badlov decided to return to the yeshiva after two years, viewing it as a familiar and supportive environment that allowed him to transition away from intensive medical care.