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August 19, 2007
Yes, there were heroes
The IDF's highest honor, the Medal of Valor, is to be granted to Maj. Ro’i Klein, who was killed in the line of duty on July 26, 2007, after jumping on a Hizbullah grenade to save his troops during the Second Lebanon War.
While fighting for control of the hostile village of Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon, Klein and his men were ambushed by Hizbullah terrorists. Maj. Klein led a group of soldiers and tried to attack the terrorists from behind, but were obstructed by a wall. Klein then began treating one of the wounded, at which point a terrorist hurled a grenade at the group. Soldiers who survived the battle - eight did not - reported that Ro'i yelled out "Shma Yisrael…" and jumped upon the grenade, absorbing the brunt of the explosion and saving the men around him. A stunned silence overtook the men, and then one of them started shouting, "He jumped on the grenade! He jumped on the grenade!" Though mortally wounded, Klein tried to continue to communicate by radio to his superiors.
One of his fellow soldiers, Elad Ozeri, later said that shortly afterwards, when it was thought that Ro’i was dead, Capt. Itamar Katz, who took over the command, approached him. At that point, Klein - in his last act on earth - raised his arm and gave his coded radio device to Katz. "Maj. Klein always emphasized to us the importance of finding the coded devices of soldiers who were hurt," Ozeri said, "so that they would not fall into the hands of the enemy."
Klein actually saved his men twice in the same battle, Ozeri said: "At the beginning of the encounter, he saw a grenade that had been thrown, and was able to yell and warn the men in time."
The husband and father of two small boys and resident of the hilltop community of Harisha, Klein was an acknowledged Torah scholar, superb commander and an accomplished musician in civilian life. He was buried in Eli, the Samaria community in which he grew up, on what would have been his 31st birthday.
The Medal of Valor has been awarded only some 40 times in the history of the State, and the award to Klein will be the first in 34 years. The last recipient was Brig.-Gen. (res.) Avigdor Kahalani, who commanded Armored Battalion 77 during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
The least we can do for one who sacrificed his life in such a heroic manner is to tell his story. It is not clear why the media seems to have completely ignored this story. Perhaps it is about unpopular behavior, perhaps it does not meet the image of the suffering soldier, the sensitive and scared soldier image that someone is trying to encourage.
There is no fitting explanation for the hiding of such a grand heroic story at this, why it is not being told everywhere in loud clear cries, with great wonder, pride, thanks and admiration, with tears.
Rav Seren Roi Klein, alav hashalom, officer of the 51st unit of Golani (??), from the yishuv of Eli, was of the highest rank of the fighters in Binth J'Bail. During the battle, he noticed a hand grenade that was thrown in the direction of his men. Since it was no longer possible to protect themselves and prevent the injuries the grenade would produce, he crawled toward it so that his body would block most of the explosion and his men would be saved. His self-sacrifice had the desired effect. His soldiers who were saved told that he yelled "Shema Yisroel" as he leapt toward the grenade.
Roi Klein, a mythical hero in the time when people admire anti-heroes, was buried on his 31st birthday.
They say of him that he was an excellent saxophone player and a deeply spiritual person, that he completed his engineering studies with excellence, that he travelled with his friends in Africa, had a rolling laughter, that all of his acquaintances describe him as a gentle and peaceful man, that the request of his widow is that his children should resemble their father.
A real hero.
May his memory be for a blessing.
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I received this by email, the links would not work but some of it is from Arutz Sheva and some of it I believe was written Ha Rav Gideon Perel of Alon Shevut.
Posted by LindaSoG at August 19, 2007 09:40 AM