The game will be dedicated to IDF soldiers: “The events of Shiva in October continue to accompany us even today, more than a hundred days after they began. Our hearts go out to the families of the victims and martyrs, the abductees, the IDF soldiers and the security forces.”
The game will host 50 IDF wounded accompanied by the “Brothers for Life” association, and the opening ceremony of the game will be dedicated to them, as the “Brothers for Life” association is an association whose goal is to assist in the physical and mental rehabilitation process of IDF soldiers injured in operational activity.
Until the seventh of October, the association numbered about 1,300 fighters. Since the outbreak of the Iron Swords War, hundreds more fighters, newly wounded who were injured in the “Iron Swords” War, have joined the association.
The association accompanies the fighters from the hospital bed until their return to the path of life, provides support and assistance and hope that it is possible to recover and continue life even after the injury.
As part of the ceremony, four injured people will be invited to the lawn, two from each team who will receive a personal greeting from the team
Maccabi Tel Aviv fans: Yuval Petayev, a class commander in the 51st Battalion, Golani, was wounded on 7/10 in a flare gun battle.
Ehud Antman, a fighter in Devdvan, who was wounded in Operation Tzuk Eitan.
Maccabi Haifa fans: Agam Bakr, was wounded in the battle in the defense of Kissufim on 7/10, lost 14 of his members from Golani’s 51st Battalion.
Elad Fest, was wounded in 2003, served in Golani.
After the end of the game, the family members of the late Col. Assaf Hammi, who died on October 7, will present the trophy to the captain of the winning team.
The trophy will be awarded by Assaf’s son, Alon Hammi, who will be accompanied by Assaf’s brother, Eitan Abir to the captain of the winning team.
Hammi’s widow, the late Sapir, and members of his extended family will be guests at the game, Col. Assaf Hammi, whose memory is blessed, was the commander of the southern brigade of the Gaza Division at the time of his death and was killed on the seventh of October in the defense of Kibbutz Nirim, and his body is still kept in Gaza.
During his service, Hammi was commander of the Negev Brigade, commander of the Oz Battalion, commander of the Sabar Battalion and commander of a grenade unit.
We salute the late Col. Hammi and all the IDF soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the war to defend the State of Israel.