Battalion 52 commander killed in Lebanon after only two months in post

Lt. Col. Dor Gedalya Ben Shimon was killed overnight Friday in southern Lebanon, just two months after taking command of Battalion 52. The battalion has seen one commander after another wounded during the fighting in Lebanon and Gaza.

Ben Shimon had replaced Lt. Col. Daniel Ela, who led the battalion at the start of the war in Gaza and briefly returned to the post two months ago after Lt. Col. A. was seriously wounded in southern Lebanon by a shell fragment while pursuing militants. Ela commanded the unit when the war began and took part in intense battles before being moderately wounded in Rafah in July 2024.

Before evacuation, Ela grabbed the radio, spoke to his soldiers and tried to encourage them. “Finish them off,” he told them, “I’m going to the hospital and I’ll be back.” Lt. Col. Yehuda Shalev, who replaced Ela, was also seriously wounded just three months after taking the job and later went through a long and complicated rehabilitation process.