Cpt. Shlomo Ben Nun, 22: Paratroop commander was a ‘cheerful presence’

Cpt. Shlomo Ben Nun, 22, a deputy company commander in the Paratrooper’s 202nd Battalion, from Modiin, was killed while battling Hamas in northern Gaza on November 16, 2023.

Shlomo spent the first two weeks of the Gaza ground offensive leading his troops in fighting Hamas in Gaza City, according to an IDF eulogy. He was killed in the fighting as his brigade led an operation in the city’s Al-Quds Hospital.

He was buried on November 16 in Modiin. He is survived by his parents, Elite and Noam, and his siblings Yona and Sarah.

Shlomo was born in Jerusalem, the oldest in his family, and grew up there until age 7, when his family moved to Paris, France, to serve as state emissaries. There he attended an international school.

At age 11, his family moved back to Israel and settled in Modiin, where he attended local schools. Shlomo took part in swimming, running, taekwondo and ballroom dancing, as well as a local youth group, first as a participant and later a counselor, his family said.

He also volunteered through a number of organizations, including working as a clown to cheer up local kids. He also loved to play the guitar and sing.

On March 31, 2019, Shlomo enlisted in the IDF and joined the Paratrooper’s Brigade, successfully completing a squad commander’s course and later an officer’s course. After completing the course in November 2021, he was assigned to be a team commander in the company led by Maj. Chen Bochris, who was killed on October 7, 2023.

He then moved to serve as a team commander at the Bahad officer’s training school for two cycles, before moving back to the Paratrooper’s 202nd Battalion and serving as a deputy company commander.

Shlomo was slated to begin a company commander’s course in November 2023. With the start of the Hamas attack on October 7, Shlomo led his soldiers in fighting the Hamas invasion of southern Israel, before beginning preparation for the Gaza ground invasion.

With the start of the ground offensive, Shlomo and his company entered northern Gaza and battled Hamas in Gaza City before he was killed on November 16.

“We were three siblings; Shlomo was the eldest,” his younger brother, Yona, told the Maariv newspaper. “He was the quintessential big brother, always taking care of his younger siblings.”

Yona said Shlomo “was passionate about sports — swimming, running, and soccer — and trained extensively for the army, eventually enlisting in the Paratrooper Brigade. Our family instilled in us values of selflessness and patriotism… Shlomo and I both felt a strong desire to become combat soldiers and contribute as much as we could.”

His younger sister, Sarah, told the newspaper that “Shlomo and I were very close despite the age difference… He was always caring and there for me. When Shlomo was in the army, he would call me regularly, and when he came home, he always knew how to make me happy. He was a cheerful presence.”

Read more Those We Have Lost stories here.