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Vasfi, Yoav

Vasfi, Yoav


Yoav, son of Victoria and Joseph, was born in 1940 in Abadan, Iran, and immigrated to Israel with his brothers and sisters in 1949. He completed his studies at the Hadar Yosef elementary school in Hadar Yosef and with the help of a scholarship he received from the Ministry of Education and Culture, During his studies, he joined a youth movement in the area and was admired by all his fellow members of the movement, and was a meticulous and meticulous student who combined his theoretical studies with the agricultural work at the Nahalal high school. “He loved music and art, was very fond of his teachers, his teachers and his friends. With a smile and a good word, a deep bond of friendships that stood the test of time and influenced his personality to those around him who valued his qualities and not only accepted his authority, he helped others and his friends testified that he was soaked in the “love your neighbor as yourself” The young man “and as a fan of trips and trips, toured the length and breadth of the country, and this love eventually pushed him to begin studying geography at Tel Aviv University, where he was very devoted to his family. On the valley below him, and desecrated a flock of shepherds. Yoav was drafted into the IDF in mid-October 1959 and volunteered for the infantry. After completing his basic training course, he was assigned to the Shaked Reconnaissance Unit and served until eight to the deputy commander of the reconnaissance unit, where he secured the borders of the country and took part in ambushes and pursuits. In the course of his fourteen years of service, first in compulsory service and later in the career army, he served in training positions in the Armored Corps School and in the Armored Corps course and in various command positions. During the Six-Day War, Yoav fought in the framework of the Armored Corps 7 and was then awarded the rank of excellent officer, devoted and exemplary leader. He was the commander of an armored unit, an officer in the Armored Corps and an active tank commander. He was also the commander of an armored battalion in the north. Yoav was married to his girlfriend Menoar Sarah and eventually had three children, and he established the family home at Yesod HaMa’ala, the birthplace of his wife, a member of the Mizrachi family, one of the founders of the settlement, Despite his desire to return to civilian life on the home front and to the family, his consciences did not allow him to leave his military service and three days after completing his regular service, he volunteered again, Who was confined to her because of his broken leg in a road accident, and went to the hospital and asked the doctor to remove the plaster He was an excellent professional in the field of armor, in staff work, in the area of ​​control and tactics, as well as in all the technical aspects related to the army. He was very courageous, but he was careful to keep his men alive. In every combat operation he was always in the lead tank, visiting and supervising the fire, and at the same time guiding the sub-commanders. By nature he was modest and quiet, did not stand outHis external appearance and manner of speech, but he knew how to impose his authority in pleasant and friendly ways. During his service he was awarded the “Operational Service Award” and “The Six Day War”. When the war broke out on Yom Kippur, Yoav’s tank force was one of the first to be recruited and sent to stop the onslaught of Syrian armored columns. On October 7, he headed a tank company in Ma’aleh Gamla and destroyed enemy tanks. This blocked the way for the Syrians, who tried to descend to the Jordan and secure the path of the attack against our forces. In this operation, his tank was hit and he continued to command another tank. The next day, as he progressed, he encountered an enemy anti-tank squadron of infantry and tanks, storming the head of the battalion, destroying the enemy formation, taking control of the oil route and blocking enemy reinforcements on this route. Five tanks on Tel Akasha Despite the heavy bombardment of the enemy, the battalion captured the hill and blocked the enemy’s retreat route, and the battalion under its command destroyed sixty to seventy enemy tanks on October 16, 1973. On October 16, 1973, Yoav heads his unit on Syrian artillery positions in the Kudna area. Despite the heavy shelling, he took his head out of the turret to watch the battlefield, then was hit in the head and killed. He was brought to rest in the cemetery in Rosh Pinna. He left behind a wife and three children, parents, brothers and sisters (his father died a year after his fall). He was awarded the “Medal of Valor” for “showing courage in carrying out a combat role in a spirit of courage.” In all his actions, he displayed great courage, coolness, leadership and resourcefulness. In a letter of condolence to the bereaved family, then-Defense Minister Moshe Dayan wrote: “He was knowledgeable and knowledgeable in field positions, diligent, dedicated, loyal, disciplined and responsible. The Chief of Staff at the time, Lieutenant General David Elazar, wrote: “He saw his service as a mission and bore it with devotion and love, always devoted and devoted to increasing the strength of the IDF and nurturing it, Shalev wrote: “Yoav succeeded in leading his unit heroically and bravely through the enemy’s arsenals, even after his tank was hit three times. – Today it is difficult to pass through his unit without realizing that Yoav was its commander. It is difficult to express in words my deep appreciation for his ability as commander and leader in battles; “In my letter of condolence to his family, one of his subordinates wrote:” I think that in the war he was the man who had the strongest influence on me and who pushed the battalion into operations that might have taken the scales in our favor. It was a very special figure of a commander whom I had never encountered before. On the one hand, talented as a demon, a great tactician, a warrior of grace and above all a brave man, I saw all the time how he was a fighter: he ran forward, all the time first, standing completely exposed in the turret, it was not courage we knew; It was a supreme thing and I know that no one would have fought so bravely without Yoav. We owe him the liberation of the plateau – which is true. But it was not only on this side that won our hearts. He had personal conversations with the crews, passed every spare moment among the fighters, a smile on his face, talked and explained, took an interest in everyone’s needs, and tried to do what he wanted. During the battle he was above anyone. And very expensive. He continues to accompany the battalion and a lot of things are done in his name. “An article about his fighting, for which he was awarded the” Medal of Valor “, and his death was published in” Bamahane “.

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