Nik Beizer, 19, began his IDF service in April as a liaison at the Erez-Gaza border
The still-new recruit was supposed to have been home on October 7, but switched with a friend
The death of Nik Beizer, 19, was confirmed by the IDF on December 15, 2023, and his body was returned to Israel for burial. This is the story of his capture and its aftermath:
Nik Beizer, 19, began his army service on April 30, and on October 7 was taken captive by Hamas terrorists who launched an assault on his base near the Erez Crossing.
Beizer was working at the IDF’s Gaza District Coordination and Liaison, which coordinates permits and the passage of goods through the Erez Crossing into Gaza.
“That’s the irony,” said Beizer’s mother, Katy Beizer. “Everyone at this base is taking care of the Palestinians, working so that Gazans can live their lives.”
That morning, Katy, who lives in Beersheba, received warnings on her phone about sirens at Beizer’s base and she called him at 6:30 a.m.
Beizer said he heard the sirens, and some shouting and shooting outside.
Beizer wasn’t supposed to be at the base that weekend but had switched with a friend who wanted the weekend off.
Beizer and the other soldiers in his room went to the safe room to wait out the sirens. Katy called him again at 7 a.m., after hearing on the news about a terrorist attack near the border and Beizer tried to calm her, telling her not to worry.
At that point, Katy heard noises in the background and Beizer’s phone turned off. That was the last time she heard from her son.
Hamas terrorists took control of the Erez Crossing that morning, sending pickup trucks of gunmen into Israel’s Gaza border communities.
At 12 p.m. that day, Katy found a Hamas video of Beizer on Telegram, showing him and two other soldiers being taken to Gaza.
That night, she was officially notified that her son was a Hamas hostage.
