Within 36 Hours, More Than NIS 2 Million Raised for a Wounded Soldier

The family of a Nahal soldier who was critically wounded by sniper fire in Gaza has launched a crowdfunding campaign to buy a home that will allow him to continue his hospitalization and rehabilitation. The people of Israel opened their hearts.

Ido Nehmad, a soldier in Battalion 931 of the Nahal Brigade, was 20 when he was shot in the head by a sniper in the northern Gaza Strip on January 3, 2024, during an operation to locate hostages in tunnels. The injury to his brain stem was so severe that, at first, he was declared dead. Two and a half years later, he remains unconscious, and bears the painful title of the most seriously wounded soldier from the Iron Swords War. Over the years since then, Ido, now 23, has been treated in eight hospitals and undergone 20 surgeries, 10 of them to his head.

Several months ago, his family decided to move to home hospitalization and set up a full medical setup in a rented house that allows for continuous care alongside a dedicated staff. However, within a few months the family will have to vacate the property. As a result, they decided to purchase a permanent home that would be adapted to Ido’s medical needs, accommodate his two caregivers, and allow for a long-term rehabilitation framework. The Defense Ministry helped provide significant financing, and the family added equity, but a gap remained that required a public fundraising campaign. The response was immediate. In just 36 hours, more than NIS 2 million was raised through the charity platform JGive, from donors in Israel and around the world.

“The pace of mobilization is moving and reflects the mutual responsibility that continues to characterize the public, even in such a complicated period,” said JGive CEO Shai Tzrvinski.

Zohar Nehmad, Ido’s sister, spoke today with Yinon Magal and Ben Caspit on their 103FM radio program and shared with listeners her brother’s complex medical condition, after he had been hospitalized for long months following his severe battlefield injury. At the start of her remarks, the sister spoke about the treatment decision the family had made and her brother’s current medical condition. “After two and a half years, we moved my brother Ido to home hospitalization, מתוך understanding that this is the thing that will help his rehabilitation the most,” Nehmad explained. “Ido still has not regained consciousness because of a bullet in the brain stem.”

Later in the conversation, Nehmad expanded on the housing difficulty the family faces because of the need to adapt the living environment to Ido’s condition. “Right now we are in a rented house that we are required to vacate in September,” the sister described the tight situation. “To complete the purchase of a house that will suit Ido, a lot of money is needed for the project.”