Five years have passed since that fiery summer of 2014, the days of a firm cliff where we fought with the aim of bringing the enemy victory and restoring the security of the people of Israel. Coincidentally or not, the day I enlisted in the Golani Brigade as a fighter and a young commander, then three decades ago, up my post in the Brown Brigade until receiving command of it, drained into one night that reminded me most of all why I was enlisted in the IDF.

During one of the first battles in the campaign, we arrived in the Saja'ia neighborhood of the Gaza Strip, a definite stronghold of the Hamas terrorist organization. In a dense, crowded city, where everything goes underground (literally), I led the brigade force toward the task of destroying the terror tunnels dug in the direction of Nahal Oz and Kfar Gaza. That night we were in one of the houses in the neighborhood, and suddenly an RGG missile shot us through the walls of the house and blew the air a few inches away from me and my AG officer. I was wounded by shrapnel in my head and eyes and rushed to the hospital.

As a commander, the only thing that stood before me was the peace of my soldiers, their command and operational tasks remaining in the field to win the enemy. Throughout the operation, you could see the direct impact of the commanders' front-of-battle position on the spirit of the soldiers on the ground: full end-to-end harassment. I had no doubt that I must return to battle no matter the severity of the injury; And without thinking twice, after the doctors removed the shrapnel from my eyes, my daughter returned to the fighting front.

For me, the rehabilitation process has been very fast and I continue to serve our country proudly to this day. Like me, there are tens of thousands of inspiring rehabilitation stories of IDF soldiers, our good guys, who have been injured in their bodies and souls while defending them insanely for the homeland.

In recent years I have met and accompanied quite a few combatants who were wounded in their military service, and every time I see their rehabilitation process and their desire to get back on track - it excites me and fills me with pride.

As a society, we must thank the IDF for their sacrifice and cherish them, as part of the moral and moral obligation to those who are affected by the vigilance of state security. As a commander in the IDF and as a citizen of the country, I salute you for your personal victory in the rehabilitation process.

Brigadier General Rasan Alian, head of the Civil Administration for Judea and Samaria, was a Golani Brigade commander in Operation Protective Edge