“Bullets whizzed over my head and grenades exploded around us – I thought I was going to die,” recalled Menachem Ben Khalifa, 23, from Jerusalem. He recounted the harrowing battle he fought alongside fellow squad commanders at Kibbutz Kissufim on October 7.
As Menachem, a soldier in the 101st Paratrooper Battalion, fought with his fellow soldiers against dozens of armed terrorists, he was critically wounded by Kalashnikov fire. “The bullet that hit me entered my left arm, pierced my left lung, and was just a centimeter from my heart,” Menachem described. “The doctor told me it was a miracle the bullet changed direction and exited my body through my abdomen.”
In that battle, six of Menachem's fellow soldiers were killed: Sgt. Omri Peretz, Sgt. Matan-Israel Malka, Sgt. Bar Yankelov, Sgt. Lavi Bohnik, Sgt. Regev Amar and Sgt. Adam Agmon. “The course we went through together as squad commanders brought us closer; they are very dear to me,” Menachem shared about their intense shared experiences. “The battles on that Saturday, fighting together shoulder to shoulder, bonded us even more. It is important for me to continue their legacy, to remember and honor them.”
Memorial project in fallen soldiers' honor
Four months ago, Menachem began preparing for the first event in a memorial project for his six friends who fell in the battle where he nearly lost his life. “In that battle where I was wounded, I was given my life as a gift, and from that moment, I decided to fulfill dreams,” he said of his plan. He aims to conquer goals and dedicate them to the memory of his friends. The first goal was participating in a triathlon.
He got the idea to participate in the competition from veteran wounded soldiers he met at Beit Halochem in Jerusalem, where he has been a regular since his injury. “I saw former soldiers, some wounded in the Lebanon or Yom Kippur wars, people who could be my grandfather’s age,” Menachem said. “They all keep fit – running, swimming, cycling, participating in sports competitions. I was impressed by them; what champions, they gave me inspiration.”
Menachem knew that the memorial project through sports for his fallen friends involved many challenges. Immediately after his injury, Menachem was evacuated to Soroka Medical Center, where he received life-saving treatment, and then transferred to Hadassah Medical Center for a complex eight-hour surgery that saved his arm.
After being discharged from intensive care, Menachem continued his recovery in the rehabilitation department, a complex process that continues to this day with bi-weekly treatment at Hadassah Mount Scopus Hospital. Meanwhile, three times a week, he woke up at 5:00 a.m. for intensive training sessions to prepare for the competition, despite the physical limitations he has carried since his injury.
“Yoram Dar, my personal trainer, prepared a strict training schedule for me to reach my goal,” Menachem described his arduous journey. “Beit Halochem in Jerusalem rallied and made all the necessary adjustments for me to complete the course – like a bike with a front brake combined with a rear one because my left hand is completely paralyzed and cannot hold the handlebar. Through the process, I proved to myself that I am capable, despite all the difficulties.”
Looking forward
Menachem participated last week in the Ashdod triathlon, proudly waving a flag with the pictures of the six friends he lost. “I am here in their memory,” he shared.
From the starting line, he embarked on a 750-meter swim. “I veered right due to the paralysis in my left hand, so I drifted 165 yards and ran on the beach to continue to the next stage,” he described. This did not stop him from continuing to the 12.4-mile cycling stage: “It started with a flat tire, but I didn’t let it bother me,” he said.
He completed the triathlon with a 3-mile sprint. “I finished the competition moved to tears. I knew I was doing it for the six friends I lost, the best guys in the IDF,” Menachem concluded.
After catching his breath at the end of the race, Menachem has already set his next goal. “For me, this is just the beginning,” he declared. “In the future, I will complete the Ironman competition. I will also arrive with the flag, in memory of my six friends.”
He also doesn’t intend to easily give up on the army that released him from service due to his injury. “I know that after I finish the rehabilitation, I will do what it takes to raise my profile and succeed in serving in the reserves,” he said.