1st Sgt. Arthur Markovitzi, 46: Police officer protected festival goers
Killed battling the Hamas attack on the Supernova music festival on October 7
First Sgt. Aharon Arthur Markovitzi, 46, a coordinator in the Israel Police’s procurement and sales unit, from Holon, was killed while battling the Hamas attack on the Supernova music festival on October 7.
A survivor from the rave told a local news outlet that Arthur stood on guard as partygoers fled and protected them from the wave of Hamas terrorists, even after he was wounded by gunfire. Social media videos from the day of the attack show him and other police officers setting up a roadblock as they fired back at Hamas gunmen.
Arthur told his commander that he had been wounded, but he continued to remain in position until he was hit by an RPG and was killed, according to eyewitnesses. His body was not identified for five days after his death.
Arthur was buried on October 13 on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. He is survived by his wife, Revital, their four children, Noam, 19, Stav, 18, Yuval, 13, and Shay, 8, his parents, Zev and Mina, and his sister, Shirley.
Born in Bucharest, Romania, Arthur and his parents moved to Israel when he was two years old, settling first in Bat Yam and then Holon, where his younger sister was born, according to a police eulogy. He studied at the Holtz Air Force High School in Holon, before enlisting in the IDF and serving on the Tel Hashomer base.
After his release he worked at a number of jobs in order to fund his studies, earning a bachelor’s degree in economics and business administration at Bar Ilan University. He worked at many different companies, including Motorola, Pelephone, Egged, Nanonics and even as an aide to a member of Knesset, but always dreamed of pursuing a security career.
In 2021 he achieved his lifelong dream, enlisting in the Israel Police and joining its logistical branch, something his family said gave him great satisfaction.
Arthur met Revital in 2000 and they wed in 2002, building their life in Jerusalem where they had four children. In August 2023, just months before his death, the Markovitzi family moved into their dream home in Ashkelon. He loved to read and do crosswords, enjoyed Israeli musical artists and most of all loved spending time with his family, they said.
His daughter, Noam, told a Holon news outlet that after she completes her national service she plans to enlist in the Israel Police in his honor.
“Dad, I plan to volunteer for the police,” she said. “I want to bring you happiness and make you proud of me… you’re my hero. I’m here to continue what you didn’t finish. I’m here to take care of and to love Mom and my siblings. Dad, I will love you forever.”
Arthur’s wife, Revital, told a Jerusalem news outlet that her husband “was a man of peace, someone everybody loved, happy and funny with a great sense of humor. Our home was always full of music.” Arthur, she said, “could never be mad or hold a grudge, everything with him was with a smile and peace… never judgment or criticism.”
Despite his devotion to the police force, Arthur always put his family first, she said, “he was simply the kind of dad and uncle that everybody wants. He was involved in the kids’ lives and loved by everyone. He would go to parents’ nights, trips, school activities. When the extended family would get together, Arthur could always be found with the kids, playing with them.”