One year after being critically wounded during the October 7 Hamas attacks, Lieutenant Niv Baranes, 22, of the Golani Brigade’s 13th Battalion, has undergone his final surgery.
The procedure was performed by Dr. Oren Michaeli, a Jewish-American surgeon who traveled to Israel specifically for the operation. Dr. Michaeli, who served in the Golani Brigade like Baranes, was joined by Prof. Dana Egozi, head of Plastic Surgery at Kaplan Medical Center.
Baranes was wounded while defending Kibbutz Nir Am, which was spared from being breached by terrorists. “The siren sounded, and shortly after, a drone dropped a mortar on us. We began fighting at 6:30 a.m.,” Baranes recalled.
“We attacked four terrorists before they could cross the fence.” During the battle, Baranes was shot in both hands. Despite being critically injured, he fought on for three hours before being evacuated to Kaplan Medical Center, where he underwent 12 surgeries over five weeks.
During the battle, Sergeant Matan Abergil was killed after throwing himself on a grenade to save his comrades. "I was in the field for three hours with a tourniquet, without reinforcements or anything," Baranes said.
"Around 10:00 a.m., I was evacuated to Nir Am and arrived at Kaplan Medical Center by 1:30 p.m. I was hospitalized there for five weeks, undergoing 12 surgeries in a month. The bullets shattered my left arm. Last week, they stitched my nerves.
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From left: Dr. Oron, Niv Baranes, Dr. Michaeli and Dr. Egozi
(Photo:Gilad Shabani Shoofan)
"I know all the guys who fell. It's not easy, but we have to keep moving forward. It will always be with me. Nir Am was not breached, partly thanks to my unit and my soldiers. We managed to protect the kibbutz. Now, either I'll return to the army, or I'll start real life."
Dr. Amir Oron, a senior orthopedic and hand surgeon at Kaplan, explained that hypersensitivity in Baranes' radial nerve required the expertise of Dr. Michaeli, who volunteered for the procedure. “Niv dreams of returning to combat service, and I hope we can make that possible,” Oron said.
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