IDF soldier collapses and dies during Negev training drill

A soldier died on Wednesday morning after collapsing during a training exercise at a southern army base on Wednesday morning, the IDF Spokesperson’s Office reported.

Cpl. Yehoshua Hefetz, a 19-year-old from Jerusalem, collapsed on the final day of a grueling four-day trial in the Negev for entry to the elite IDF combat engineering unit Yahalom. Medics tried in vain to resuscitate Hefetz at the scene. He was evacuated to Yoseftal Hospital in Eilat, where he was pronounced dead.

The soldier reportedly collapsed while jogging near his fellow recruits. Although Wednesday was one of the hottest days of the year so far, it was not clear that heat or exertion were unusually harsh.

Dr. Yaakov Arad, head of emergency medicine at Yoseftal Hospital, was quoted by Channel 2 News as saying that Hefetz suffered a heart attack that was most likely unpredictable — similar to the deaths of otherwise healthy athletes during sporting events.

The IDF Ground Forces command and the chief medical officer launched an investigation into the causes of the soldier’s death.

Hefetz was drafted last year as a cook in the air force, friends said, and had pressed repeatedly for a move into a combat unit. His father died two months ago, they said, and he refused to accept any of the eased terms of service for which he was eligible as a consequence.

Additionally on Wednesday, two soldiers were injured when a weapon was accidentally discharged at a Nahal training base, Channel 10 reported.

One of the soldiers suffered a .762 round to the leg and the second was injured by bullet fragments.