B”H
Corporal Itai Buton HY”D, son of Shelly and Yossi, grew up and was raised in Petah Tikva. Those who knew him speak of a young man with a heart of gold — boundlessly generous, someone who among other acts of kindness would donate food baskets to those in need during the holidays. Itai was humble and modest, an outstanding student and athlete — in every sense, the salt of the earth.
Itai served as a combat soldier in the Shaked Battalion of the Givati Brigade. When the war broke out, Itai and his comrades rushed south, and were among the very first forces to enter Gaza in the ground offensive. There they fought with extraordinary courage for many long weeks. Itai believed with all his heart in the justice of their cause, and never wavered in his conviction that the IDF would prevail.
On the 26th of December, during an operation in a building in the northern Gaza Strip, three armed terrorists — carrying grenades and Kalashnikov rifles — leaped across the rooftops and began descending from the seventh floor toward the lower levels, where Itai’s platoon was gathered for a briefing on the third floor. The platoon commander had gone up to the top floor to arrange the night watch, when the terrorists lying in ambush there opened fire on him and he fell.
Itai, hearing the gunshots and knowing his commander was on the upper floor, was the first to run toward the sound of battle, charging directly into contact with the enemy — and there he fell to the terrorists’ fire. Through his bold and selfless action, his fellow soldiers were alerted and prepared, enabling them to engage the terrorists in a prolonged battle that ultimately ended with all three being eliminated. Yet before it was over, another soldier fell as well, cut down while attempting to retrieve Itai’s body.
Driven by camaraderie, courage, and an instinct to close with the enemy, Itai HY”D halted the enemy assault at the cost of his own life, preventing a massacre of his fellow soldiers. He fell as a hero of Israel, just twenty years old.
Itai’s father, Yossi, reached out to us with a request for help raising funds to commission a Torah scroll to be written in Itai’s name. In partnership with the jgive platform, we launched a crowdfunding campaign in support of this sacred endeavor — and together, we raised over ₪105,000.
In a deeply moving meeting, we presented Yossi with the funds collected during the campaign. He shared with us the full story of Itai’s life and deeds on behalf of others, as well as every detail of the sequence of events in the battle in which Itai HY”D fell.
Rabbi Idles noted that within Itai’s very name — Itai Buton — lie encoded his defining qualities: faith and trust in God (emunah u’bitachon).
Attached are several photographs from the gathering.
