Nathaniel Yaacov Alkoubi

Nathaniel Yaacov Alkoubi z"l fell in battle in the Gaza Strip. Nati was called up for reserve duty on Oct. 7 and was killed on the day he was supposed to be released home. His wife, Efrat, recounts: "they entered a building that had a tunnel shaft, under the staircase, and when it exploded, a situation arose that all the walls that were around this shaft did not allow the fire to escape and all the fire drained out, from the main door of the house, where Nati was standing with two of his soldiers, and that's how they took the brunt of the explosion. He remained intact, from head to toe. He was really intact, just as he is , a quail, you could even really see some kind of small smile on the lips, one of resignation." His friends and soldiers told a lot about his resourcefulness, the ability to lead, the bravery he possessed and the actions he was involved in during the war, both during interviews he gave during the war and after his death. However, behind the fighter and leader, there was a family waiting for him in the rear: "We really have five amazing children, and Nati was the most, most sensitive and amazing father in the world," says his wife. "The children were always at the top of his mind, the house at the top of his mind, taking care of the children and their needs, spending time with them, being a father, really being a father, educating them to fulfill their dreams, go take care of yourself, and be a good person. Really, every free time they had with him was time I experienced". "Nati worked as a chef in citizenship," Sarit points out, revealing another side of the life of the heroic soldier in uniform who fell in defense of the homeland, "He had his own business a few years ago and for the past two and a half years he worked at the Gali Kinneret Hotel in Tiberias as a chef. He really loved what he did. The kitchen There was a place where he could express his creativity, this talent of his, and of course we were blessed with amazing dishes at home every holiday based on Nati's cooking, dinners after the children fell asleep, or it's only our couple's meals, which he indulges, and with all the hard work. This one, always even when he gets home, it was from a place of doing it out of love." Three months after his death, Elkoubi manages to distill the will he left behind for her, his children, all his acquaintances and loved ones, and probably also for all the residents of the State of Israel: "I know that, as in his life, he wanted us to live, to truly live, especially after this tragedy, after such a great loss He would not want it to be in vain and he would not want us to live a life of sorrow and sadness. To make the most of life, to remember that it is really thanks to him that we are here. I wish to myself that I will be able to raise our children with joy and recognition of this great privilege that fell to us that he is their father, that he is my husband, and that it is thanks to him that we are here." The late Lt. Col. Alkobi left behind a wife and five children: Enhal (11), Avishag (10), Talia (7), and the twins Aviad and Avitar (3 and a half). His wife, Sarit, is the secretary of the Rambam Rheumatology Institute.