Chief Petty Officer Ofek Rousso, 21, a Shayetet 13 soldier in the Israel Navy, from Kadima Zoran, was killed on October 8 while battling Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 8.
Ofek was on his base in Atlit the morning of October 7, and like many others was sent down south by the army to counter the Hamas invasion. He and his unit arrived at Kibbutz Be’eri that afternoon, after first stopping in Ofakim and assisting a number of wounded.
In Be’eri, he and his comrades went house by house looking for survivors and the wounded and killing Hamas terrorists holed up inside. Around 2:15 a.m. the next day, two soldiers were shot and seriously wounded in the kibbutz and Ofek ran to treat them. He was shot and killed on the spot as he protected one of the wounded with his body. That soldier was later rescued and survived, Ofek’s family said.
Ofek is survived by his parents, Faye and Yaniv, and his older sister Inbar. He was buried on October 12 in Kadima.
He grew up in Kfar Netter in central Israel, and explored a number of hobbies, including karate, skateboard and musical instruments — learning over the years to play the saxophone, guitar and drums, according to a memorial website. He even attended a skateboarding camp one summer in the US and was a regular in the Israeli skateboarding scene. He loved music of many different genres, and learned to play his favorites on the guitar. He loved to eat, especially red meat, and enjoyed steaks and his mother’s spaghetti bolognese.
After finishing high school, Ofek attended HaEmek pre-army academy to prepare him for an elite army position, and just before his 19th birthday he enlisted, underwent paramedic training and began the challenging Shayetet 13 course, which he completed with great pride a few months before he was killed.
After his death, Ofek’s family found in his phone a number of notes he had written to himself, including one reading: “We cannot forget our past, the people thanks to whom we are here, my brothers who were killed on this land. For 2,000 years they persecuted us, and now we are here in our own country, as fighters. We’re not leaving here. Now is our turn to protect the nation.”
Writing in a Times of Israel blog post, Ofek’s uncle, Dotan Rousso, said his family wants Ofek to know “how much you meant to us. How much we appreciate you. How much we loved you.”
“How much you were a source of admiration — a role model. You had an inner calm, resilience, humility, and modesty beyond compare. Self-discipline. Iron will. Maturity. Kindness. Tenderness and innocence,” he wrote. “Your life was so short but meaningful and more deserving than the long lives of many. You fulfilled your dreams, lived a meaningful life, were a role model for others, and finally gave your life to save others.”
His girlfriend, Roni Ben Hur, wrote online that “Ofek, you were the best thing that ever happened to me, how could it be that it ended like this? You are the most unique and incredible person there is,” she added. “You are so strong, and yet so very gentle, you are so brave, and yet very sensitive.”
The last time they saw each other, she wrote, was his 21st birthday, on October 2, when they sat and watched the sunset on the beach, and “we spoke about the past year and a half, we also laughed. We talked about your journey, your experiences with your family and friends, our experiences together, your service as a combat soldier in a place you loved so much, and your expectations for the future… Your birthday was also the last time I hugged you, and I can’t believe that it was the last time forever.”
Ofek’s mother, Faye, wrote online that he always set himself goals, “didn’t allow your fears to hold you back and you saw the obstacles in your way as challenges.”
“You are with me every moment,” she wrote. “I imagine you smiling at me, I have conversations with you. I ask you what you think and you always answer me: ‘Mom, I’m with you, all the time. Look around. Look for a sign, I’m with you, with Dad, with Inbar, with grandma and grandpa, with all of the family, with my friends. I’m watching over you from above.'”
