Capt. (Res.) Eyal Sela

Nov 6, 2001 - Capt. (Res.) Eyal Sela, 39, of Moshav Nir Banim, was shot dead in an ambush by three Palestinian terrorists on the southern Nablus bypass road.

Captain Eyal Sela, an IDF reserve officer and sapper in the engineering unit, was killed in an ambush by Palestinian terrorists while commanding a patrol south of Nablus. Sela, critically injured by a bullet wound in the stomach, was evacuated by helicopter to Tel Hashomer Hospital where he died of his wounds. In the ensuing gun battle, IDF soldiers shot and killed the terrorists, who belonged to Hamas, Fatah, and the People's Party.

Eyal Sela lived with his wife Naomi and their three children in Moshav Nir Banim, in the southern coastal plain, north of Kiryat Gat. The couple met in the US, and after getting married lived in Kibbutz Kissufim. Six years ago they moved to Nir Banim. Eyal was employed as the Be'er Sheva regional manager in a partner company of Orange cellphones.

This was Sela's first reserve duty in the territories since the outbreak of violence last year, and he was to complete his service in a week in a half. Home on holiday earlier in the week, he told his wife that the service in the Nablus area was tough on him mentally. He added that he felt that the Palestinians in the area were only trying to make a living and live a peaceful life.

The residents of Moshav Nir Banim said that Sela was a quiet and serious man. He only expressed his thoughts when it was needed, and when he did so, he did it quietly and in a restrained manner. He was actively involved in the school his eldest son attended and a member of the parents association.

Capt. (Res.) Eyal Sela was buried in Moshav Nir Banim. He leaves behind his wife and three children - Nitzan, 8, Yoval, 5 and Zohar, 2 - his parents and two sisters.