The family of the late Staff Sergeant Gal Kidan, who was killed last week in the attack at the Ariel junction in Samaria, spoke to Yediot Aharonot about the loss and sorrow that had befallen the family.
Kidan left behind his parents, Marina and Anatoly, and two brothers Erez (28) and Alona (35) and his girlfriend, Nitzan Sabag.
Sabag said that "every soldier has vowed to sacrifice his life. I was there at his swearing-in ceremony, and it always affected me to hear that. The sector was heating up Friends were going down to the front line, and I told him that I was a little afraid. He said to me, 'Now it's our turn. I know it's hard for you to hear, but if I have to, I'm willing to die. ' And I knew that when he said it, it was real."
"I would never tell him to take care of himself, because to protect himself was not what guided him, but his commitment to the task, and I thank his friends for every minute they were with him.
"He had blossomed in the army and loved them madly. When I was with them I wanted to hug them forever.
"Gal must say to himself, 'I'm glad my last year was like this.' There is no good age to die. Certainly not 19 years old. But he must be watching and saying, 'I'm glad that's how I finished my life,' I'm sure," she said.
A preliminary investigation revealed that the terrorist who carried out the attack came from one of the illegal shops constructed in the vicinity of the Ariel Junction. He approached Kedan and stole his M-16 rifle and shot him to death. The terrorist then used his weapon to shoot another soldier and murder a civilian, Rabbi Aviad Ettinger.