Zimmerman, Eyal

Son of Sarah and David. He was born on the 11th of Cheshvan 5740 (November 11, 1979) in Ra’anana. A younger brother to Zohar. Eyal was a very curious and sociable child, who never took anything for granted but developed his own opinions. He attended the “Meged” elementary school in Ra’anana and the “Yehonatan Netanyahu” junior high school. In his soul Eyal was a humane person, a spiritual type, honest and open to the environment and people. His love and commitment to friendship stood out and he was the glue of the group. “His specialty was in the many friends he accumulated, he loved people,” said one of his friends. He always swept the members into arguments. His friends found him a fascinating, attentive and energetic conversationalist. “He was really a flower,” said one friend, “very intelligent, a cynical, witty man with a sense of humor.” Eyal was active in the immigrant camps both as an apprentice and as a guide. Father David and Eyal were very close, especially after the parents divorced and Eyal chose to live with his father. In Eyal’s youth, a friendship developed between the two as if they were of the same age. Eyal grew up in a warm, loving and supportive home despite the separation. Eyal graduated from the Ostrovsky High School for Social Studies. His trademark was his long hair and gold glasses. “Eyal always came with his long ponytail pulled up, sitting next to the wall, if I’m not mistaken in the third row, he liked to argue with Tammy, the political science teacher – about everything he had an opinion about,” said his high school friend Michal Grundland. Eyal was the master of the debate. In his speech at the Memorial Day for IDF Fallen Soldiers in 2010, Mayor Nahum Hofree said: “Under the cold stone tombstones … our loved ones, who fell in battle … Among the names is Eyal. Eyal Zimmerman of Ostrovsky High School. Eyal, who was killed in Jenin. Eyal was recruited to the Nahal Brigade on November 26, 1997. He served as a combat soldier in the 931 Battalion during which he spent long periods in Lebanon, and his regular service aroused fears and fears among his father. , On March 29, 2002, Operation Defensive Shield was launched, the main purpose of which was to damage the Palestinian terror infrastructure and to stop the wave of attacks that intensified. Eyal was the first to arrive at his unit on April 1 following an order 8. This was his first reserve service after his discharge from regular service in the IDF. The infantry battalion embarked on an operational activity, and eight days of continuous and difficult fighting broke out over the reserve fighters, fighting from house to house, from alley to alley, and in the twilight of the ninth day of fighting, And commanders, some of them from the force encountered and others from the rescue forces, was a battle of heroism, determination, courage and devotion to the cause.As a soldier and a friend of the auxiliary company, Eyal helped keep his friend Reuben wounded, In a battle in Jenin on April 9, 2002, the Holocaust Martyrs ‘and Heroes’ Remembrance Day, Eyal was killed at the age of 22. He was buried in the military cemetery in Ra’anana, and he left behind a father and a sister.