The horrific incident in S'Gaiya earlier this week, in which nine fighters, including senior officers, fell, also claimed the life of Sergeant Achiya Daskal, 19. Her brother, who was a graduate of the Yavne religious yeshiva high school in Haifa and a graduate of the yeshiva in Kiryat Shmona, was survived by his parents, Amos and Shlomit, and eight brothers.
Today (Thursday), her late brother Daskal, a hero of Israel who wanted with all his might to enlist in Golani and participate in the ground fighting to eternal rest, was brought to the military section of the Haifa cemetery.
His father, Amos Daskal, painfully eulogized him: "We are a God-fearing family and from this we understand that each of us has a mission in the world, each one and his role. We do not always understand what our role is in the world, but it is clear to us, clear to the whole world and clear to her brother now, what his role was in the world.
Her late brother Daskal, photo: None
"Her brother graduated summa laude. He sits there now by the chair of honor and takes care of all of us. Her brother's virtues that characterized him throughout his short life were precisely his behavior in battle, and for that my heart is full of pride. The very fact that her brother was killed in the war, that the people sent him to fight for the good of the people of Israel, he is already considered a man of royal martyrs who sits there and is near the throne of honor.
"But her brother not only joined and took part in the war, but her brother pushed, pushed with all his energy and might, he sought it, he purified himself towards it and he ran there with great joy and there too strove for contact and fought until his last moments without the slightest thought of his own well-being."
Simple fear of God and love of Torah
"Her brother's integrity always cried out to me and always cried out to me. He hated hypocrisy and distanced himself from it and although in all the fitness tests in the army in the Golani that he had, whether it was a baror test or a route test, her brother led the company but her brother never used it for his needs, from her brother there was a simple and tremendous fear of God He felt the need to become stronger in studying Torah before the army, and finally chose Yeshiva HaSeder Kiryat Shmona even though none of his classmates chose it, He went there alone. His priorities were always clear – Torah study, physical fitness, friends, music, etc. There in Kiryat Shmona he simply enjoyed learning Torah without tests and other obstacles.
The mother of her late brother Daskal follows his coffin in tears, Photo: Herzi Shapira
The parents, Amos and Shlomit, photo: Herzi Shapira
"I know that the way of Torah guided him down the road as well, and in the army he found time to learn Torah even during his service. Every Shabbat he remained in the army, he made sure to go to synagogue to study Torah at the expense of the rest time he had. Even when he chose the army, he did not continue in the comfortable royal way, but sought to be as combat as possible, of course, as he saw fit. As is well known, every Seder yeshiva receives an allocation to the unit of its students who go to it. Her brother's class received the Nahal Brigade. Her brother wanted Golani, we won't explain why here, so he said goodbye to his friends again.
"He chose a unique route that he signed and waived so that he could leave the Nahal and reach the Golani, without anyone accompanying him on a new path. Again he went alone on a new path without any friends who, thank God, he had in abundance. Her brother did not ask to be in Golani because of respect, he always distanced himself from honor, was modest, introverted and shy.
"Just an example since he was little, her brother didn't even ask the store clerk for help. He was ashamed to ask or bother anyone else. He always wanted to go as far as possible in order to make the most of his abilities and contribution. In our conversations, when I talked to him about female soldiers and entering homes, he always told me that today those who enter homes are not only elite cruisers and therefore there is nothing to worry about, and also worried him that in the Golani today they are led by CIOs, which are, basically, what are CIOs? It's armored personnel in the disguise of infantry. It was very regrettable to him, because he wanted to fight on the ground, he wanted to feel the ground.
"From the little we have heard so far, this is exactly how he gave his life on foot, occupying houses, in close contact with the ground, without any protective vehicle."
"Tell him his son fell a hero"
Father Amos also spoke about a message he received from one of the reservists who fought alongside her brother in battle. "A soulmate of mine from the army, his name is Shalom Abukasis, told me that he was at the headquarters of the 51st battalion commander, and so he wrote to his father, this is a quote from someone who was there next to her brother, I didn't meet him because he's still inside.
"If you talk to Amos, tell him that his son fell a hero, I saw him, he said, I saw him with my eyes, fighting like a lion, let him be proud of him, that's what the friend said about her brother, he didn't know her brother personally, they weren't friends, he was already in the reserve stage. So live, I knew who you were, maybe I didn't appreciate enough, you never know, until you get to the moments of truth, the real test, and now there's no doubt, you stood up big time. I very much hope that I am worthy of you, and it is clear to us that we have been greatly privileged by the fact that you have built.
The funeral of her brother Daskal at the House of the Maidens in Haifa, photo: Herzi Shapira
"Another quality that is important for me here to say is the degree of light of her brother, in his quality of filial piety, which was so special of his qualities. You conquered my heart and every time I was with you on your special way to honor us, even though I never asked you to, you never let me carry anything, even a garbage bag, or carry the tallit back and forth from synagogue, you would literally snatch what I have in my hand, no matter what condition you were in, if you also arrived on Friday in basic training, near Shabbat and maybe someone else would expect to be served and he would lie down to rest, You didn't, you made sure to look for all my white shirts beyond what belonged to that Shabbat. You ironed them out one by one, without me demanding or asking, all on your own initiative."
Became happiest in man
Regarding her brother's strong desire to fight, his father Amos said, "Her brother's class was moved to Gaza on Simchat Torah about three weeks before he completed his training in Golani's 51st Battalion. In the first stage, her brother stayed out because he was destined for a mech course and he was not one of the first third who entered his company, only a third entered at the beginning, and he kept saying that this is the essence of a fighter - to fight in battle - otherwise he has no interest in continuing to advance in the army, he was not willing to think about any mech course if it would prevent him from going into battle. He insisted that this was what he wanted to do, and indeed during the ceasefire that was, while they were returning those hostages, the company went out to freshen up and its brother was told about three days before entering again that he was going to enter.
"Immediately he became happy in man, people who talked to him saw that he was all shining, radiating with happiness. Her brother did not hesitate for a moment and did not lose a second, until the very moment of entry, he immediately worked feverishly, working and refining every part in his possession, every cartridge, vest, shoes, every pill, everything he needed and feared he would need it inside and everything there is today, thank God.
Golani flag on the grave. The funeral of her late brother Daskal,
"Just an example, that he suffered from stomach pains for a long time, and once we would talk about it it wasn't that it prevented him from doing anything, he did everything along with it. Only when I asked him about it when we arrived, which was this situation after the beginning of the war, of course, did he say to me, Dad, this is a war, now there is no pain and nothing interesting? It's just striving for touch.
"He told me about his preparations for entry with joy and pride, and this I call his purification in preparation for his sacrifice to the family of Israel. What a mission it is to do this in these days of unity and wholeness among the people for such a noble cause, what a privilege we have been. Her brother in the entire period since Simchat Torah until now he went out, wouldn't go home even when he could, and everyone there I know went out to 48 something like that, except once when he asked to go to the funeral of a good friend from the yeshiva who was killed and there was a military funeral in Jerusalem, he was afraid to miss an opportunity to enter Gaza. The time he went out to his friend he didn't come home just went to the funeral and came back, we take comfort in the fact that her brother was so happy in his mission. It was his strongest desire and he fulfilled it.
"I would have paid any fortune in the world to sit with him just before he was killed, I don't dismiss death but just hear from him as usual the experiences he went through there. I hope and pray that G-d will give strength to our leaders to continue the work until the end and not stop even for a moment despite all that there is, witnesses among the people as well."
"If you die then in battle"
"Like our father Isaac, her brother chose to give his life for the people of Israel. He also said on one occasion to his sister, I don't know how to say it, but if you die, then in battle for the good of the people of Israel.
"I quote here what I found on his closet, he photographed words of Torah and pasted them on the closet at the entrance to the room and polished out what was important to him. There are a lot of things there, I took two sentences that characterize him a bit I quote here is a book by Rabbi Oded Walensky, we didn't even know exactly at first where it came from and he wrote there like this for a quote and he marks it as appropriate for a fighter to adapt to himself the straight way, the great caution and so thorough that it will become his real property."
"Eliminate evil"
"Our request to the government is to ensure that our sacrifices were not in vain, there will not be another opportunity to eliminate this evil, but God forbid only if we are forced to experience events similar to this again and no one wants it. Don't tell stories that you can always do that. We must prevent a recurrence of this, only then the sacrifice of her brother and the rest of the victims will not be in vain. It is clear to everyone that they are striving, yes the bad Hamas, are striving to get a second date today from our leader to eliminate us, and that is the meaning of any concession we make. God will avenge the blood of her brother my beloved son with the help of the people of Israel and its leaders, the people of Israel live."
"Everywhere they tell you as a special person, a Torah scholar"
Colonel Zafrir Ben Ze'ev, who was formerly Battalion Commander 51 three decades ago, a friend of father Amos, eulogized her brother on behalf of Golani and the army. "Brother, we stand here today pained and shocked by the terrible loss of your passing in battle prematurely. A life cut short abruptly. You were born and raised into a beautiful family, a family of values, of love of the land, of love of the people and the land, salt of the earth. You enlisted in 2023 in the Golani Brigade, the same brigade your father enlisted in years ago, literally the continuation of generations."
"I didn't know you, but since your passing and from knowing your father for many years when we served together as officers in the Alexandroni Brigade, I found myself trying to learn who you were and who you were. After your supposed martyrdom, everywhere you are told as a special person, a Torah scholar, a believer and a religious observant. Your friends from the platoon said that you were a squad commander, a great head, a diligent fighter, full of energy, that you never complained about anything, you received a mission and you are already in it, full of action and always good."
The funeral of her late brother Daskal. He waited so long to enter Gaza on the ground, photo: Herzi Shapira
You went through a difficult and challenging course and knew how to withstand any difficulty and get through it with a big smile. Ability for any challenge When you became a fighter in the Golani, they knew, the next generation is strong and ready for any mission. I didn't know you personally, they tell of a gentle, quiet young man, with a huge and good heart, a man of letters and depth. A special soul, with a special connection to parents and family, with an open and continuous dialogue with Dad. Your commanders saw you as a commander, a leader, despite your short time in the army yesterday evening you fell in battle, fell fighting, during the counterattack, against a murderous terrorist attack forced on us by human animals, while fighting with courage and determination you fell dead with your comrades and subordinates while fighting the battle and striving for victory at every moment. The story of your heroism and the heroism of your friends will be told for generations to come.
At these moments, when your commanders and comrades from the magnificent 51st Battalion continue the fighting and are unable to accompany you on your last journey to me, I, the 51st Battalion commander, from 30 years ago as a representative of the Golani Brigade and the Golani Brigade Veterans Association, because in Golani a fighter eulogizes a fighter. I stand here as a member of the family, the Golani family, Shlomit, Amos and the brothers, the entire broad and special family, we will stand by you and do everything possible, as much as necessary, if only to make things a little easier. Her charming, beautiful, wise, warrior and brave brother was Shalom, my brother from Golani.
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