When Sergeant Y., a soldier in the Nahal Brigade's platoon, was on guard duty in one of the communities near the Gaza Strip after the "Iron Swords" war broke out, he suddenly saw an owl running and jumping on the ground, unable to fly. He recognized that one of the wings of the raptor was damaged, and decided to try to save it.
"I am a cadet in Bahad 1, and my battalion carries out various security missions in the area," Y. told Israel Hayom. "We arrived on one of the patrols to one of the communities near the Gaza Strip, and when I saw the owl on the floor, I realized it was injured. I put on gloves, grabbed him and took him with us in the patrol vehicle we drove to our base."
It was surprisingly calm. The owl saved by Sergeant Y., photo: IDF Spokesperson
Y. was surprised that the owl showed no resistance to the perception: "I was sure he would try to peck at me or fly away from me, but on the contrary - he was very calm. They arranged a cardboard box for him with food and water, and after five minutes he was so calm that he just fell asleep."
Later, the soldier wanted to transfer the owl to a professional who could take care of him because he could not leave his company, which is in round-the-clock operations.
The beginning of a wonderful friendship. Sergeant Y. and the owl he saved,
"I found the Nature and Parks Authority's Hai Bulance, which transports injured animals to the wildlife hospital on safari," he said. "I contacted them, and they did come to us to get the owl. I also plan to contact the hospital to ask how the owl is."
The owl, which amusingly is also the unit sergeant of the Nahal Platoon, was not the only animal Y. saw during his activity in the area. "I saw deer and other animals, which you would expect to be frightened by the noise and the many security forces around, but they actually seemed very calm and used to the situation," he said.
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