Itzik Elgarat, 68: Kibbutz handyman who loved to travel the globe

Itzik Elgarat, 68, was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7 and murdered in captivity.

When terrorists streamed into the kibbutz that Saturday morning, Itzik held the door to his reinforced room closed. The gunmen shot and wounded him through the door while he was on the phone with his brother.

His loved ones said they were told he had been taken first to the Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, and they later received a sign of life from him from hostages who were freed from Gaza in November 2023. But in July 2024, his family was told that he had likely been killed in captivity, following a Hamas claim.

On February 27, 2025, his body was returned to Israel by Hamas as part of a ceasefire-hostage release deal, providing final confirmation that he had been killed. The Prime Minister’s Office said Itzik had been murdered in Gaza. Authorities later confirmed his likely date of death as March 15, 2024.

His brother, Dany, later revealed that Itzik was tortured to death by Hamas gunmen who mistakenly thought he was an IDF pilot due to a tattoo. He had been held alongside captive IDF soldier Edan Alexander until Itzik was taken and killed. Edan was freed in May 2025.

Itzik was laid to rest in Nir Oz on March 3, 2025. He is survived by his two children, Ronni and Max, and his siblings Rachel, Dany and Ofra. He was predeceased by his siblings Elie and Uri. Rachel’s ex-husband, Alex Dancyg, was also kidnapped from Nir Oz on October 7 and slain in Gaza.

Born in Bat Yam, Itzik grew up in the city with his five siblings. As a young man, after his army service, he followed his siblings, Elie and Rachel, to Nir Oz, where they were among those who had helped establish the kibbutz.

While living on the kibbutz, Itzik met a Danish volunteer, Dorota, and they fell in love, married and moved to Denmark. There, they had two children and lived together for 12 years before divorcing.

Itzik then returned to Israel and settled back in Nir Oz several decades ago, keeping up regular visits to his children in Denmark, and they would also travel regularly to the kibbutz.

Itzik worked as the kibbutz handyman, and knew how to fix everything and anything and was responsible for all the plumbing, gas lines and infrastructure.

“Itzik was an integral part of the social landscape,” the kibbutz wrote online in a eulogy. “He always knew how to connect generations, to welcome people with all his heart, to fill evenings with laughter, backgammon and soccer games. His smile symbolized optimism, and his huge heart was always open to anyone who needed it.”

He was a fanatic soccer lover, his loved ones said, devoted to the Maccabi Tel Aviv team as well as rooting for the Danish national team. He also loved to play the sport, always competing in the kibbutz’s annual Shavuot tournament. Itzik also loved music, in particular Arik Einstein, and the Ehud Banai song “Canaanite Blues.”

Itzik loved to travel, his loved ones said, visiting Norway, Thailand, Italy, Georgia, Bulgaria, Portugal, Romania, Morocco, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Jordan, Spain and more.

His nephew, Amit, wrote online upon this death a tribute to “my beloved uncle, our man of the world — embracing cultures, endlessly curious.”

“A football genius, one of the greatest of your generation — both in mind and on the field,” he added. “Maccabi Tel Aviv, nothing but yellow — that’s Maccabi. A man of deep conversations, a lover of people, honest, and emotionally intelligent beyond measure. I will miss our experiences and our talks. I will miss our football debates, our jokes, our secrets.”

“Laughter and joy were a part of you — inseparable from who you were,” Amit continued. “It was impossible to smile in captivity, but I am certain that now, you are smiling and watching over us from above.”

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