"The images of these young soldiers, recruits who only enlisted in August, will stay with them for a long time," said a relative of one of the soldiers injured in Sunday's Hezbollah drone attack on the Golani Brigade training base near Binyamina. The attack, which struck the base’s dining hall, killed four soldiers and wounded over 50 others, including eight seriously.
Speaking from Hillel Yaffe Medical Center in Hadera, the relative expressed disbelief at the lack of warnings ahead of the attack: "It’s incomprehensible—no alarms were triggered, which would have sent everyone to shelters. I don’t want to call it a blunder, but something went wrong. One drone was intercepted, but the other disappeared. Something wasn’t right."
Another relative, whose family member was also evacuated to the hospital, said, "It was a direct hit on the base. My relative survived, but the sights he and his friends witnessed were horrific. The Air Force must conduct a thorough investigation—there was a major failure."
Residents in nearby Kiryat Yam and Yokneam reportedly alerted authorities to the drone, prompting questions as to why no alarms were activated. "This is a huge tragedy—four dead, dozens wounded. Alarms should have been triggered to prevent this disaster," the relative added.
Hagit Ohayon, whose son Yarin was lightly wounded in the attack, recounted the events in an interview with Ynet: "It was a miracle. They entered the dining hall around 7:15 p.m., and as soon as they sat down, there was a massive explosion. There was chaos—dust, smoke, loud noise. It took him a minute to realize it was a drone because no alarm was sounded. He messaged us saying he was okay and that there were fatalities, which he had seen."
At HaEmek Medical Center in Afula, four soldiers with light injuries are recovering. "It was a huge miracle," said the parents of one injured soldier. "Just minutes after the explosion, he called us, and we rushed to be by his side."
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Sergeant Alon Amitay, Sergeant Yoav Agmon, Sergeant Omri Tamari and Sergeant Yosef Hieb
(Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
Another mother, Galit, whose son was hospitalized at Hillel Yaffe, shared her relief: "He was sitting with three of the soldiers who were killed, and he survived. It was a miracle. The drone hit their table in the middle of the dining hall. He went to help a friend, only to realize he was bleeding from his own head."
She described her son's condition: "He has shrapnel in his arm and abdomen, but thank God he survived. He’s not talking much, but he saw some horrific sights. I hope he can recover emotionally." Galit also expressed gratitude for the support she received, saying, "We’re from Holon, and we’ve been surrounded with love and support here."
Another father questioned why no alarm system was activated: "I don’t understand why we didn’t activate the warning systems to prevent this disaster. There were dozens of young soldiers in the dining hall for dinner. The drone pierced through the roof and exploded. I hope my son and the other wounded soldiers recover, both physically and emotionally. They witnessed terrible scenes—friends covered in blood, crying for help."
The IDF released on Monday the names of the four soldiers killed in the attack: Sgt. Omri Tamari from Mazkeret Batya, Sgt. Yosef Hieb from Tuba-Zangariyye, Sgt. Yoav Agmon from Binyamina-Giv'at Ada and Sgt. Alon Amitay from Ramot Naftali. All were 19-year-old infantry recruits in the Golani Brigade.
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