Dahan, Meir

Son of Aliza and Solomon Solomon. Meir was born on July 13, 1958, in Morocco. When he was five, he immigrated with his family to Israel. He lived in Tiberias and attended a religious elementary school. Meir received his high school education in a vocational school in Tiberias. At school they recognized him as a sociable boy who liked to help everyone, and as an outstanding student. In February 1976 Meir was drafted into compulsory service. He asked to serve in the Border Police and his request was given to him. At the end of his training as a combat soldier he was sent to a squad commanders’ course, which he successfully completed and was appointed as a squad commander in the Border Police units. In January 1979, Meir finished his compulsory service and volunteered for a career in the Border Police, where he completed a course in symbols, a driving course and completed his matriculation studies. During the Peace for Galilee War, he and his unit were sent to serve in Lebanon. Meir was a very sociable person and often used to entertain members of his unit at home, and among his friends he stood out in his alertness and his joy of life. His commanders admired him as having a strong desire to advance, diligent, with discretion and the ability to make the right and wisest decision. He cooperated with his commanders and subordinates, volunteered for every mission and became known as a person who had fun working with him. Meir’s father was a severely handicapped person and his role as head of the family was very limited. Meir took on the role of head of the family, took care of everything he needed and was his mother’s right hand all the way. In the middle of 1983 Meir married Sarah and began to establish his own family. Nevertheless, he did not neglect his care and concern for his parents and his seven brothers and sisters. At that time he sought to end his career in order to be part of his family for a longer period of time and to provide solutions to the family’s livelihood problems. His request was given to him and it was decided that he would finish his service on January 18, 1984, but this did not happen. Sergeant Meir fell in the second Tire disaster. During the Peace for Galilee War, while the IDF was operating against the PLO and Hizballah organizations in Lebanon, the Border Police acted in collaboration with the General Security Service in the eradication of terrorist cells in the city of Tire. The fighters were housed in a facility that had two two-story buildings. On Friday, November 4, 1983, at 6:00 am, a pickup truck drove from the Rosh Hanikra-Zur highway to the facility, which was surrounded by a dirt embankment and a perimeter fence and was secured with constant protection. The pickup truck drove the gunner’s suspicion and opened fire. Another guard who noticed the incident also opened fire at the suspect. Despite the fire, the truck broke through the entrance gate to the facility and entered between the two buildings. The suicide bomber detonated the 500 kilograms of explosives in the car and caused the buildings to collapse. Sixty people were killed, including twenty-eight members of the security establishment. Meir was twenty-five years old when he fell. He was buried in the military section of the cemetery in Tiberias. He left behind a wife, mother and seven brothers and sisters. Meir’s sister, Shoshana, wrote: “All his expectations and plans after the liberation were shattered, due to the heavy tragedy in which Meir found his tragic death in the second Tsur disaster, which left a void in the life of his family in which he served as a leader. “His image will not be sold from our eyes forever to”