Itay Chen, HY”D, 19, was last heard from at 6:40 a.m. on October 7, 2023. He was part of a tank unit at the Nahal Oz military base, which came under heavy bombardment that morning.

According to Ruby Chen, Itay’s American-born mother, Itay had stayed at the base over Simchat Torah so that he could return home to Netanya for his younger brother Alon’s bar mitzvah the following weekend.

Itay was originally thought to be a hostage in Gaza; it was later determined that he had been killed on Oct. 7. His death was confirmed by the IDF in March 2024. His remains were taken into Gaza and have not yet been released.