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On the morning of October 7, IDF soldier Adir Bogale stood alone at the entrance post of the Nahal Oz base as Hamas launched its attack. His two comrades, Dor Lazimi and Ori Karmi, ran to reinforce him under heavy mortar fire. Together, the three fought against dozens of terrorists until they were killed in battle. Their families, who recently received footage and testimonies from the event, spoke with pride: "We knew they were heroes, but we didn't know to what extent."
An IDF investigation into the attack, presented Monday, commended Lazimi, Karmi and Bogale. At 6:36 a.m., as the assault began, the three engaged in a fierce battle against dozens of terrorists. For about 40 minutes, they held their ground before being overrun.
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IDF soldier killed in action at Nahal Oz base
(Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit, Courtesy)
'I always knew my brother was a hero'
Dor Lazimi’s brother, Bar, told Ynet he didn't know how many had fought at the gate until the report was released. "Dor and Ori were the only ones who didn’t fight from the shelter — they were on the front line," he said.
"Dor made his decision without knowing the full scope of what was happening. He thought only 20 terrorists had infiltrated. Communications were overloaded so he handled things by phone and then ran out to fight."
Bar described watching a video showing his brother sprinting toward the entrance post "without knowing what was happening." He added: "It's reassuring to know those were his choices but I'm also angry.
“Maybe if he'd stayed in the shelter, things would be different. Some from the shelter survived. I always knew my brother was a hero — but I didn't understand how much until I saw the footage," he said.
"They fought for nearly 40 minutes and you can see in the videos how the terrorists couldn’t breach the base because Dor, Ori and Adir were holding them back," he continued.
"They were found with empty clips. It was a brutal fight. They could have stayed in the shelter, but moved to the front line instead — just 50 meters (164 feet) from the terrorists attacking from both sides. They chose to leave the base rather than stay inside — that’s courage."
Bar described Dor as someone who always stepped up to help. "He would say yes first and figure things out later. In battle, it was different. In that split second when he had to choose, he chose to fight.
“It was instinct — no time to think, just pure bravery. You can see in the footage how he goes from zero to 100, grabs his gear and runs to the post. I called him while he was there but he didn’t answer. He sent me his last message at 6:57 a.m. from the post: 'I'm okay.'"
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Despite his brother’s heroism, Bar said it doesn’t ease the pain of his loss. "There's no comfort, because we always knew he was brave. Even after all this time, it’s hard to process. These reports come out of nowhere and pull you back. It's hard to hear, hard to go up to his room and see that nothing has changed," he said.
"They still haven’t told us everything," he added. "There are more videos we haven’t received. But I'm not going to fight it — we’re small compared to the system. We’ll take what we can get. I told the officers that at least now I have more to say about Dor."
'We don’t abandon our post'
Adir Bogale’s father, Gidon, said the investigation left him with a heavy heart. "Given the situation they were in, they had no proper weapons for that kind of fight," he said. "It’s frustrating that with all the warnings and intelligence, they were left so unprepared.
“Adir was alone at first until his two friends jumped out of bed and joined him. Not many know about their fight. They faced a wave of terrorists with incredible bravery."
"They had no grenades or anti-tank missiles — just rifles, so they could only hit the terrorists when they got really close," he added. "They didn’t have much. That’s what pains us. Watching the footage was difficult. What if they hadn’t been there? The disaster would have been much worse. We’re proud of what they did, of their courage."
Gidon recounted how his son refused to retreat. "Adir chose to stay at the post and told his friends, 'We don’t abandon our post.' And when he realized the battle would get worse, he took the Golani Brigade flag, rolled it up, and placed it in his vest," according to his father.
“That’s what the people who treated him told us. He loved Golani, wanted to serve there and he died as part of Golani. He could’ve stayed home that weekend — he was injured — but he wanted to return so his leave wouldn’t come at his friends’ expense," he added.
Adir, his father recalled, "was always giving. He didn’t come home to party — he came to help people and hand out food to those in need. He had a deep respect for others, especially the elderly. His cousins and nieces called him 'Grandpa' because he was always looking after people."
'He was the first to run there'
Lidor Karmi, Ori Karmi’s sister, described an overwhelming sense of pride. "At 6:29 a.m., Ori is seen wrapped in a blanket. A few minutes later, he’s running with Dor to the post," she said. "He then ran back to the shelter to warn the others that this was a much bigger attack than they thought. The terrorists surrounded the post. Ori, Dor and Adir never stood a chance."
"It was nearly an hour-long battle of sheer heroism," she continued. "They stopped the first wave of terrorists and everyone who stayed inside the base is alive today because of them. I feel immense pride. They were elite soldiers, true heroes.
“This was a battle of bravery for everyone in the base. Anyone who was at Nahal Oz that day is a hero. They faced complete abandonment and did everything they could to save lives. Thanks to them, what happened in Kibbutz Nahal Oz wasn’t as catastrophic as in Nir Oz," she said
Lidor recalled how her brother always rushed to help. "Ori wasn’t at the post initially but he was the first to run there. Even if he had survived that, he would have died somewhere else. He had no chance — because he would have run into danger anywhere to protect others. Now we’re waiting for more footage they won’t release. We want to see the battle up close."