IDF Soldier Injured in 1973 Yom Kippur War Succumbs to Wounds Days Before Israel’s Memorial Day

Yitzhak Dreksler died following complications that were a direct result of injuries sustained during battle in the 1973 Yom Kippur War. 

By: JNS.org

Yitzhak Dreksler, an IDF soldier who was seriously injured during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, passed away on Saturday following medical complications directly related to the injuries he suffered in battle.He was the last casualty of the Yom Kippur War.

Dreksler, an ultra-Orthodox Jew, served in the Orthodox Nahal Hareidi Battalion of the Armored Corps during reserve service. During the war, a rocket struck his tank in the Golan Heights, but he escaped the burning tank, suffering severe and debilitating burns. After undergoing 70 surgeries, he was declared a disabled IDF veteran on 95 percent disability.

He went on to help found the haredi town of Emmanuel in Samaria and spent the last years of his life in the Orthodox town of Elad, where he dedicated his time to commemorating fallen religious soldiers, helping to found the Netzah Yehuda Battalion in the Kfir Brigade and advocating for haredi Israelis to enlist in the IDF.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman honored him in a tweet, noting that Dreksler “was a yeshiva student who left his studies and his pregnant wife, and went to serve as a reserve soldier to protect the country and the nation.”

He added: “I salute you.”

Dreksler noted that religious soldiers during his youth were warmly accepted by their families and communities.

He is survived by six children, including two IDF officers, and many grandchildren.

He passed away just ahead of Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day, which will be marked on Wednesday.