Tzila Niv

Oct 7, 2004 - Tzila Niv, 43, of Rakefet was killed along with her sons Gilad and Lior in the terror bombing at the Hilton Hotel in Taba - one of two tourist sites in Sinai hit the same night.

At around 22:00, a blast ripped through the Hilton Hotel in the resort town of Taba, near the border with Israel. The powerful blast was caused by car bomb which exploded at the entrance to the hotel, containing an estimated 250-300 kg of explosives, causing the collapse of part of the hotel. At about 23:30, two additional explosions occurred in the camping area of of Ras a-Satan, located about 45 kilometers south.

Tzila and her husband, Zohar Niv were vacationing at the Taba Hilton Hotel with their four children - 18-year-old twins Sharon and Yael, and the boys - Gilad, 11, and Lior, 3. Tzila was putting the boys to bed when the explosion occurred, and their 9th floor room collapsed. Zohar, seriously wounded, found his twin daughters, who were in an adjacent room, unharmed. Tzila and the two young boys were killed.

Tzila and Zohar Niv were among the founders of Rakefet, a small community in the western Galilee, in 1981. Tzila earned a B.A. in classical Arabic language and taught Arabic at the nearby Misgav experimental high school, as well as in Carmiel. She was the local coordinator of Arabic school teachers and was demanding and a perfectionist.

Neighbors told of her dedication as a teacher and of her special relationship with her twin daughters. Tzila was also a talented dancer and a member of the Misgav dance group - a hobby she shared with her husband and two daughters. The Nivs were a happy and close-knit family that enjoyed traveling.

Avital Ziberger, secretary of Rakefet, said, "Tzila gave the girls a ton of love and warmth, and always made sure that the younger children would be near her. Fate determined that they would be together at the time of the explosion, too."

Tzila Niv will be buried together with Gilad and Lior in Holon. She is survived by her husband, Zohar, and their two daughters, Sharon and Yael, as well as by her parents, Selly and Aryeh Sharon.