Revital Ohayon

Nov 10, 2002 - Revital Ohayon, 34, of Kibbutz Metzer, was one of five people shot and killed by a terrorist who infiltrated the kibbutz, located east of Hadera near the Green Line.

Revital was killed with her two sons, Matan, 5, and Noam, 4, as she tried to hide with them in a corner of the room. After putting them to bed several hours before, she had been speaking on the phone with her ex-husband, Avi, when she heard shots outside. She dropped the phone and ran into the boys' room, where the terrorist pursued them and shot them as they hugged one another. Avi Ohayon heard the fatal shots over the phone before it was disconnected.

Another kibbutz member, Yitzhak Dori, was killed in an exchange of fire with the terrorist, and Tirza Damari, of Elyachin, was shot as she was strolling with a friend, who escaped harm. The Fatah Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for the attack. The terrorist escaped.

Revital had moved with her sons to Metzer from Pardes Hanna about three months before. She had met her husband, Avi, while studying filmmaking at Tel Hai Community College and they were married for three years before divorcing three years ago. Avi Ohayon was summoned to the scene of the attack from his work as a news film editor at Channel 2. A mutual friend, Menahem Bar-Gil, said the two had remained close.

Revital taught filmmaking and communications at the Pardess Hanna Comprehensive High School and Ma'ayan High School in Ein Hahoresh. Her friends described her as a devoted teacher with a highly developed social consciousness. "She would monitor each student's projects individually," said Dorit Balin, national supervisor of communications at the Education Ministry. "And she also made time for extracurricular intiatives. For example, she started a joint film project between an old age home and a youth group in Pardess Hanna, which she called 'What I Leave Behind is Yours.' "