St.-Sgt. Ya'akov (Kobi) Naim

January 23, 2003 - St.-Sgt. Ya'akov (Kobi) Naim, 20, of Kfar Monash, was one of three Lavi Battalion soldiers killed by terrorists who ambushed their night-time patrol south of Hebron.

The three soldiers were patrolling on foot in an area near the main Beersheba-Hebron road in order to secure the road for Israeli motorists. As they approached the Kevassim intersection, two terrorists, who had apparently been lying in wait for motorists, opened fire at the soldiers from close range, killing two of them outright. The third managed to fire several shots at the attackers before succumbing to his wounds. The terrorists escaped.

"At my funeral I want them to hang white balloons and for people to wear black," Kobi Naim told his sister and an uncle prior several months before his death. "I feel that I'm not going to get out of the army alive," his uncle, Amos, recalled him saying. "I want you to hold a happy funeral for me. Don't cry. Come in black suits and bring a lot of white balloons. I also want you to sing the songs, "I Did It My Way" and "Such A Perfect Day."

Naim was raised in Ma'aleh Ephraim and moved with his family to Kfar Monash. He served in the Givati Brigade, where he recently completed a sergeant's course and signed up for an army career. Despite his plans for his own funeral, friends and relatives described him as a happy person.