Father of Fallen IDF Officer in Gaza and Another Son Passes Away in Tragic Loss

Rabbi Avishai Natan from the Nachlat Har Chabad neighborhood in Kiryat Malachi passed away on Shabbat at the age of 55. He was the father of Lieutenant Colonel Issachar Natan, who was killed early in the recent war in the northern Gaza Strip. Issachar, 28 at the time of his death, served as an officer in the IDF Commando Brigade and was regarded as one of the army’s elite fighters. He had studied in Chabad yeshivas and volunteered for combat service driven by a strong sense of mission.

Issachar had previously warned of the possibility of Hamas militants infiltrating communities near Gaza. In an interview as a company commander in the Paratroopers Brigade, he described his concern that if he was not positioned at a key location, nearby residents could be attacked by infiltrators. He also led the unit that identified terrorists during a deadly attack in Elad about a year and a half ago. Just before the war, he participated in Simchat Torah celebrations with his community.

Following Issachar’s death, the family suffered another blow with the sudden passing of another son, Rabbi Nadav Yehuda Natan. This double tragedy has left the family and the Chabad community in Kiryat Malachi in deep mourning. Rabbi Avishai Natan was a well-known and beloved figure in the community, continuing a family tradition of devotion and sacrifice, as his father, Mari Shimon Natan, z”l, had served in the elite Shaked reconnaissance unit.

Rabbi Avishai Natan’s funeral took place late Saturday night, starting from his home in Nachlat Har Chabad, passing through the central synagogue Beit Eliyahu, and concluding with burial in Kiryat Malachi cemetery. The Chabad community and the wider Torah world expressed condolences to the bereaved family, praying for comfort among all mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.