Reservist succumbs to wounds sustained in Hezbollah drone attack

Maj. (res.) Dor Zimel was among 18 people hurt in strike on Arab al-Aramshe community center on April 17

By Emanuel Fabian 21 April 2024, 7:58 pm Edit

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

Maj. (res.) Dor Zimel, who was critically wounded in a Hezbollah drone attack on April 17, 2024, and succumbed to his wounds on April 21, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Maj. (res.) Dor Zimel, who was critically wounded in a Hezbollah drone attack on April 17, 2024, and succumbed to his wounds on April 21, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

A reservist officer critically wounded in a Hezbollah drone and missile attack on the northern border community of Arab al-Aramshe last week succumbed to his wounds on Sunday, the military said.

He was named as Maj. (res.) Dor Zimel, 27, a deputy company commander in the Etzioni Brigade, from Even Yehuda.

Another 13 soldiers and four civilians were wounded in the attack on April 17, during which Hezbollah launched two anti-tank missiles and an explosive-laden drone from Lebanon, targeting a community center in Arab al-Aramshe.

Though the town has been largely evacuated, soldiers are stationed there and may have used the building as a gathering space.

Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it targeted a building being used by the Israeli military with guided missiles and explosive-laden drones.

Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya, which treated the 18 victims, said Zimel arrived in critical condition, and was suffering from a severe brain injury. The hospital said it was forced to declare his death after evaluating his condition.

Zimel was engaged, having proposed to his fiancée with a ring gifted to him by the father of Addir Mesika, who was murdered by Hamas terrorists at the Supernova music festival on October 7. He was due to get married in June.

In response to the drone attack, the IDF carried out an airstrike against a site belonging to Hezbollah’s air defense unit in northeastern Lebanon’s Baalbek, almost 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the border.

Since October 8, Hezbollah and allied terror groups have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a daily basis with rockets, drones, anti-tank missiles and other means, saying it is doing so to support Gaza during the war there.

On Sunday, the Gaza-based Hamas terror group’s Lebanon branch claimed responsibility for a rocket barrage on the Upper Galilee. In a statement, the terror group said it launched 20 Grad rockets from Lebanon at an Israeli army base near the town of Shomera.

There were no reports of injuries in the attack.

Earlier Sunday, Israeli fighter jets struck two buildings in southern Lebanon’s Ayta ash-Shab, where the IDF said Hezbollah operatives were gathered.

The IDF said additional Hezbollah sites were hit in Naqoura and Majdal Zoun.

Two rockets were also fired at the Rosh Hanikra area, after which the IDF said it shelled the launch site and later hit a Hezbollah position in Qotrani in response to the attack.

The Lebanese terror group claimed responsibility for at least five separate attacks Saturday.

Israel has threatened to go to war to force Hezbollah away from the border if it does not retreat and continues to threaten northern communities, from where some 70,000 people were evacuated to avoid the fighting.

So far, the skirmishes on the border have resulted in eight civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 11 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.

Hezbollah has named 285 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon, but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 54 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and at least 60 civilians have been killed.

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