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Yom Hazikaron: Remembering WIZO Nahalal Graduate Dudu Amar z"l

WIZO remembers its 147 graduates of its schools and youth villages who fell in defense of the State of Israel. Here is the story of one of them, Dudu Amar z"l, a graduate of WIZO Nahalal.

May 07, 2019

Dudu Amar

Dudu Amar z"l, son of Albert & Ofra Amar, was born on the 4th of Cheshvan 5742 (1.11.1981), and was the brother of Idan (who was also a student at WIZO Nahalal, following in the footsteps of his older brother Dudu), Matat, Orel and Noam.

Dudu grew up in Kiryat Shmona. He attended the Tel Hai elementary school and continued his studies at the CHW & WIZO.uk Community and Comprehensive school in Nahalal. He arrived at the boarding school in 11th grade and completed his studies at Nahalal in the year 2000.

According to Dudu, his years spent studying at in the agricultural school at WIZO Nahalal were wonderful and life-enriching. At Nahalal he absorbed the smells of the youth village, enjoyed the work in the cowshed and connected to working the land. Dudu was a child of nature and simplicity. He traveled all over Israel with his family, especially in the spring, when he enjoyed the flow of the waterfalls and the amazing flora and fauna of northern Israel.

Dudu had a very close relationship with his family. Before every important decision he made he consulted with his mother and his brothers. However, in the end, after considering and thinking, he acted as he saw fit. He was an incredibly sensitive young man, smart and brilliant. Already as a child, his spiritual qualities stood out, and his mother often told him that he seemed to exist in the world of  literature and not in the physical world. He had a knack for looking at people and seeing things hidden beneath the surface.

Dudu's modestly stood out. He asked for almost nothing for himself; clothes, property, and money did not interest him. Even though he hardly had any money in his pockets, he always offered his help and gave it to others, even if it meant giving the last of his money. He was surrounded by many friends from different worlds who sought to be close to him. He always said that from each of them he got something different that contributed to their friendship. He knew how to give each person the proper attention, investing and devoting himself, while providing the maximum sense of closeness. Throughout the years he maintained contact with all his friends and even after his enlistment to the IDF he made sure to visit his friends wherever they were. After he fell, many friends came to his home claiming that Dudu was their best friend.

Dudu loved life. He laughed a lot and lived without fear. Most of the time he was cheerful as if there were no tomorrow. He projected a sense of easygoingness to all his friends and acquaintances, but his brothers and close friends knew that beneath his jovial exterior, the amazing dimples and the perpetual smile on his face, there was a serious young man who understood the difficulties of life, a person who was considerate, a person one could count on.

Apart from his love of nature, Dudu had other hobbies. He loved music very much and taught himself to play guitar which he practiced for hours. His favorite band was Pink Floyd. In his early teenage years, he would go up to the roof with his telescope and look at the stars. Another hobby he developed was photography. He saw things, landscapes and objects, as only someone with the eye of a photographer could notice.

At the end of July 2000, Dudu enlisted in the IDF and became a combat engineering engineer. He participated in operational activities and filled various missions in Judea and Samaria - Tulkarem, Ramallah, etc. He often faced dangers and when his colleagues asked him to show greater concern for his own personal safety he'd say, "Don't worry about me, there is no chance that I will die in the dirt of the territories, but in Lebanon defending my homeland," He did not know how accurate his prediction would turn out to be.

His commanders always said that Dudu and the D9 bulldozer were one, like interlocking tools. Dudu was always calm and sure of himself.

After his release from the army, he fullfilled his dream of a taking a big trip abroad before going on to higher learning. "Youth is short and fleeting, it must be exploited, I can always learn," he said.

On July 12, 2006, Hezbollah terrorists opened fire along the northern border, under the cover of which they attacked an IDF patrol, killing, wounding and abducting two reserve soldiers: Sergeant Ehud (Udi) Goldwasser and First Sergeant Eldad Regev.

Following the kidnapping of the soldiers and the fall of eight more soldiers, the Israeli government decided to embark on the Second Lebanon War. On July 19, 2006, a week after the abduction and after many Katyusha rockets had been fired on Israel by Hizbullah, the ground attack began in elite units.

When the war broke out and they still had not called him for reserve duty, Dudu was impatient as he was eager to do his duty to defend Israel. On July 24, 2006, the time came, and he and his unit arrived in Lebanon. Ironically, his life was taken in a fraction of a second by a tool he felt so safe with.

Dudu fell in battle in southern Lebanon on the eve of the cease-fire, on August 13, 2006. He was killed in the village of Qantara by a missile that hit the D9 bulldozer he was in while on his way to open the road for the IDF forces in Wadi Saluki. With him was Sergeant Yevgeny Timofeyev who also died in the attack.

Dudu who grew up and lived in the north of Israel, was killed for the sake of protecting his home. He was only twenty-five years old. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Kiryat Shmona. He is survived by parents, three sisters and a brother. After his fall he was promoted to the rank of sergeant. On his grave, the words were engraved: "And as a tree planted on streams of water, its fruits shall be given in its time a son, a brother and a beloved friend."

May his memory, and those of all Israel's fallen soldiers be for a blessing.


Story and photo provided by WIZO Nahalal

Translated by Yonatan Sredni