Supporting Injured & Displaced Israeli Families

The Yatzkan family is ONE of MANY families who fought heroically for their lives during the October 7th massacre in Israel.

Our fundraising goal is to support and assist as MANY families as possible with their recovery and ensure their future is cared for. 100% of the proceeds will go directly to their hands.

Terrorists who broke into the house of the Yatzkan family in Kfar Gaza were unable to penetrate the safe space - following a heroic act by Erez and his wife Yifat • Erez's injury led his wife to decide to enter the danger zone herself while fighting was going on in the Kibbutz • In a conversation from the hospital she said: "We felt immense fear."

https://www.mako.co.il/news-israel/2023_q4/Article-5666918de281b81026.htm

Yifat, her husband Erez, and their daughter woke up on Saturday, Oct. 7th, to another morning of shelling in Kfar Gaza. Accustomed to these unfortunate events, they immediately jumped out of bed in the direction of their home's safe space. But this time, it was different; at the same time as the explosions, they heard gunshots outside their house. The gunshots began increasing until Yifat and Erez realized the terrorists were already inside their home. From that moment, a story of the struggle to get out of the safe space and the heroic attempt to save lives began.

Within minutes, the terrorists who searched the house reached the safe space and tried to open the door. "The handle of our SS is temporary and does not lock, so Erez had to hold it with force. It was an insane struggle - they pull, and he pulls back—few vs one him. It's a miracle he overcame them," Yifat said. When the terrorists could not open the door handle, they started shooting at it while pulling the door simultaneously. When that also failed, they used an explosive device to break the door. "There was a deafening boom. From the force of the explosion, we were all thrown back hard; Erez got hit the hardest - both of his hands exploded from the struggle and the explosion," she described the moments of horror.

As a result of the powerful explosion, the handle of the safe space door was damaged, and a small hole was created in it. The terrorists tried to shake the grip and open the door. Fortunately, they failed and decided to leave the house. "Erez was bleeding from both hands and, through his pain, whispered to us to put a tourniquet on him." Their daughter found an old landline phone in the emergency room; she pulled out the cord and put a tourniquet on both of Erez's hands. "We were terrified," said Yifat.

"I called my friend at Hadassah Hospital, who put me in touch with a trauma doctor, and he explained how to treat Erez: bring him a lot of sugar and water and lift his legs because he lost a lot of blood. I tried to call the Kibbutz's nurse; maybe she could help. In retrospect, I found out that she and her husband had been murdered."

Yifat and her daughter contacted medical emergency services, who attempted to help remotely. At the same time, Erez felt suffocating and asked to open the window. "I knew it was risky, but he needed air," Yifat described. Their daughter heard From the window a senior IDF officer speaks in Hebrew. She shouted to him and asked for a rescue for her father. One of the wounded soldiers who were outside threw two tourniquets at them. "After that, he and two other fighters entered our safe space," she said.

"I am a faint-hearted person by nature, but I did everything for my Erez."

Yifat realized she had to care for her husband with everything he would need to survive these hours until they were rescued. She made a courageous decision to jump out of the safe space window while the fighting outside was still going on. "I heard shots in the air; I bent down and ran to the shed to get a ladder to help me climb back to the safe space. Then I ran back to the house and brought everything that was missing. I did it 3 more times."

While outside, Yifat was horrified to find their house sprayed and destroyed by bullets. She also took the keys to the car, hoping that she could get to it: "I tried to figure out how to get us out of there. I heard booms and shouts in Arabic; it felt like in a movie."

As the hours passed, while the IDF forces were fighting the terrorists outside, Erez's condition worsened. "He told me he wouldn't make it. We told him he had to." The IDF forces arrived near the house after 7 hours in the safe space. Their daughter stuck her head out of the window and called for help. "Everything was under fire. They hesitated because they were preparing to fight. Still, eventually, two soldiers arrived, helped us get out of the window, and provided first aid to all of us. All the while, the shooting continued," said Yifat.

Finally, after being rescued with other wounded civilians and under heavy artillery fighting, they were met with a chopper and were airlifted to Sheba Medical Center. Although their safety was assured in those moments, Yifat could not be completely calm as her son was still in the Kibbutz, fighting with terrorists who entered his home.

Thanks to Yifat's extraordinary resourcefulness, Erez arrived at Sheba Medical Center and was hospitalized in the ICU for continued care and recovery.

Sadly, the Yatzkan family is only ONE example out of MANY families who fought heroically for their lives.

Our goal is to support and assist as MANY families as possible with their recovery and ensure their future is cared for. 100% of the proceeds will go directly to their hands.

Your help and consideration are immensely appreciated.