Charedi Soldier Originally Injured in 1973 Yom Kippur War Succumbs to Wounds

Yitzhak Dreksler, an IDF soldier seriously injured during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, passed away on Saturday afternoon following medical complications relating directly back to the injuries suffered in battle.

Dreksler served in the Nachal Chareidi Battalion and in the Armored Corps during reserve service. During the war a rocket struck his tank in the Golan Heights but he escaped the burning tank, suffering severe, debilitating burns. After undergoing 70 surgeries, he was declared a disabled IDF veteran on 95 percent disability.

He went on to help found the Charedi town of Emmanuel in Shomron and spent the last years of his life in the Orthodox town of Elad, where he dedicated his time to commemorating fallen ultra-Orthodox IDF soldiers, helping to found the Netzah Yehuda Battalion in the Kfir Brigade and advocating for ultra-Orthodox Israelis to enlist in the IDF.

Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman honored him in a tweet, noting that Dreksler “was a yeshiva student who left his studies and his pregnant wife and went to serve as a reserve soldier to protect the country and the nation,” adding, “I salute you.”

He is survived by six children, including two military officers and many grandchildren.

JNS.org –

{Matzav.com}