Sergey Botsykin received the IDF commander after he was shot in the arm and leg, forced to see his friend killed near him, and still stormed at a terrorist in Jerusalem • Three years after he still faces difficulties • Special - Commemoration Day for IDF Wounded and Victims of Hostilities

• Sergey Botsikin // Photo: Police spokeswoman

"I still experience this attack every day and every night. It's still hard for me to live and digest it. Every day I see my boyfriend, Yossi Kirma, who was killed. I'm still at this event," says sincerely Sergey Botsykin, a police officer of the prestigious motorcycle unit. The IDF for the event that changed his life and for which he received the commander's IDF.

It was a routine day in Jerusalem, October 9, 2016, at the height of the terror wave of that year. "We started the day off calmly and performed tasks," Botsykin recalls. "Around 10:00, we heard shouting about 'shooting in front of Ammunition Hill.' We jumped on the motorcycle without thinking twice - Yossi was driving, I was behind with the weapon."

A terrorist opened fire on people standing at the light rail station in front of the police headquarters, fatally wounding her son Malihi, who later died of her wounds, and another woman, and fled the scene. Yossi Kirma, who first commanded a fighting force, and Sergei Bochikin arrived in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, where the terrorist stopped, along with other forces, and a gunfight developed between the parties.

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"Yossi grabbed the bullets first and we fell," Botsykin recalls. The motorcycle fell on the two, and at the same time struck a bullet in Sergei's arm. Yossi was fatally wounded in the head and later his death was determined. "I turned in Yossi's direction and somehow managed to get out of the motorcycle. I turned to him, tried to pull him with my left hand and grabbed another ball on my leg. I realized that it was probably my end, and I had one purpose - to neutralize the terrorist."

Botsykin walked three yards from the incident, injuring his arm and leg, and holding the weapon in his left hand. "I knew I had no chance, but I had to neutralize him to stop the killing." He stormed towards the terrorist, opening fire from his weak hand. He then identified additional forces and captured his weapon. At this point, the terrorist was eliminated, and Sergei collapsed and went to the hospital moderately.

The late Yossi Kirma

Three years have passed since the aggravated event, and Sergei never returned. He cannot return to the motorcycle unit, which he called "my dream," and serves as a fitness instructor in the unit. At the same time, he is dealing with post-trauma. "I still dream of the attack, I have flashbacks. It's not easy. It really eats me, that a friend of mine was killed and I somehow survived. It's hard to live with it." Along with mental coping, he also faces physical difficulties. "After an injury you get another body to deal with, you have to learn to live with it."

Are you a hero? I ask, and Sergey answers in the negative. "It's hard for me to think I'm a hero. A friend of mine was killed and it eats me. I think I did the maximum I could do." For his work, Sergei received a commander-in-chief "due to his excellence during operational activities while discovering initiative and striving for contact". His friend, Kirma, received the masterpiece.

Commemoration Day for IDF Wounded and Hostile Victims Is Critical, Sobar Bucikin, To Recognize Fighters And Police Injured In Action. Believe that it is consumed. "With all due respect to the people who broke the leg, it's a little different. A man gave his life to terrorists. It's very important for the injured person not to forget him."