The heroism of Itamar on October 7: “He didn’t hide, he fought and gave his life”
Today, the family of Itamar Cohen from Karmiel marks his 22nd birthday at a memorial site they established near their home. His father, Eyal Cohen, said they began the morning with a memorial ceremony and will continue the day by visiting the cemetery to light a candle in his honor.
On a hill near their home in Karmiel, at a lookout point facing the Galilee landscape, members of the Cohen family gathered this Wednesday morning. They decorated the memorial they erected in memory of their beloved Sergeant Itamar Cohen, z"l, with balloons in the yellow-and-black colors of Beitar Jerusalem — the football club that Itamar loved and where he was a well-known figure in the stands. This is how they chose to begin this painful day, which they were supposed to celebrate with him on his 22nd birthday.
As background to the family gathering, they played the song “Yom Huledet” (“Birthday”) by Avichai Hollander. When the lyrics “All the angels in heaven know — today they honor you” played over the loudspeaker, they wiped away tears and looked up at the sky with smiles full of longing. On his birthday cake, they wrote: “As long as you believe — I’m with you.”
Sergeant Itamar Cohen, a fighter in the 13th Battalion of the Golani Brigade, fell on October 7 in the battle at the Pega outpost at the age of 19. In that fierce battle, he managed to fire a Loa missile at Hamas militants, killed about 20 of them, and saved his platoon comrades before he fell.
He studied at ORT Pesagot in Karmiel in a marketing and economics track. He was the youngest child of Sima and Eyal, and the brother of Elior and Ohad. They mark his birthday according to the Gregorian calendar through the activities, places, and foods that defined his life.
“This is what Itamar would have wanted — for us to mark his birthday this way, rather than staying in bed under a blanket and mourning,” his father, Eyal Cohen, told Ynet. “We opened the morning with a memorial we built in his memory at a beautiful lookout point near our home, and we decorated it together in the colors of the football team he loved so much,” the father described. “After that, we had breakfast as a family, and later we will go to the cemetery to light a candle. We will do other things that Itamar loved, and in the evening, we will watch a series he enjoyed.”
“Itamar loved carrot juice, sushi, and of course couscous. The whole family is on vacation today, and we dedicate these things to his memory,” says Eyal. “Itamar is with us every day and lives within us. He is only missing physically — but his spirit is always with us.”
“We are people of faith, and we continue because of that faith,” says Itamar’s mother, Sima. “We understand that Itamar is not with us, and we are learning to live with the loss. We receive many ‘greetings’ and messages from Itamar — through a sudden song on the radio that you are thinking about, or through dreams that I and others have.”
The family describes a boy who was the beating heart of his friends, who kept traditions and values, and who always insisted on connecting with those who remained on the sidelines.
“He was a child who grew up with many values; respect for parents was very important to him, as was helping those who were weaker, seeking out children with fewer friends, and bringing them into the group,” Sima says. “These values were also expressed when he charged forward on October 7. Because of the values he received at home, I know he didn’t hide or look for a way to save himself, but rather went out to fight and protect his friends — he fought and gave his life for the country.”
Next Tuesday, August 11, the family will hold a football tournament in memory of Itamar at Rabin Stadium in Karmiel, together with Beitar Jerusalem fans.
“I invite everyone to join us for the tournament games,” Eyal calls out.
