First Sergeant Liel Gidoni

“Liel was all about giving, love, happiness, optimism, he would help with anything he could”, tells us Mazal Gidoni, Liel’s mother. “Even when he’d go to school he’d take another sandwich with him to give the children who don’t have one. We couldn’t find a better way to commemorate Liel than this. It is a path that continues his love of life and his giving. When the children see Liel’s picture with his smile and smile back – that is the best possible commemoration”.
Liel lived in the Katamon neighborhood in Jerusalem and was known among all his friends as someone with a special personality, especially as someone with a constant readiness to help those around him. He did all this with great joy and kindness.
Liel was 20 years old when he died, a resident of the Katamon neighborhood in Jerusalem.
In one of his talks to the new recruits whom he oversaw, he told them “smile, because smiling is happiness and happiness is the strength to keep going”. This sentence became associated with him, and every sandwich is wrapped with Liel’s smile and Liel’s sentence on it.
Liel was killed in the last battle in operation “Mighty Cliff” in the Gaza strip. The day is known as the “black Friday” in which Benaya Israel, Hadar Goldin (whose body was abducted) and Liel Gidoni lost their lives.
A few minutes before entering Gaza, Liel wrote in a Whatsapp message: “all my life I was taught to give, and I’m not afraid of rockets flying over my heads, while I fight for the people of Israel”.

May he rest in peace