October 7 · Personal story
Asaf Hamami
Abducted
October 7, 2023
Abduction location
Kibbutz Nirim, where he entered the battle with two soldiers.
Current outcome
Returned for burial · November 2, 2025
His remains were returned from Gaza to Israel.
01
Ariel, Rosh Ha’ayin and Givati
Asaf was the oldest child in his family. Born in Ariel, he later moved to Rosh Ha’ayin and attended high school there. He enlisted in the Givati Brigade in 2001, served in its reconnaissance battalion, and advanced through team and company command. His later roles included leading the Rimon commando unit and the Oz Brigade training school. He studied politics and national security at the University of Haifa, earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees. In 2009 he married Saphir; they lived in Petah Tikva before settling in Kiryat Ono in 2019 and raising Arbel, Alon and Ella.
02
From the base toward Nirim
On October 7, Asaf was spending Shabbat at the Gaza Division base with his son Alon. When the attack began, he entrusted Alon to other soldiers and drove to Nirim with two members of his team, Tomer Ahimas and Kiril Brodsky. KAN’s minute-by-minute account says Hamami called for security teams and tanks and declared that the country was at war. The team entered Nirim, where Hamami was wounded; Ahimas and Brodsky carried him to a shelter, tried to treat him and called for evacuation while fighting attackers. They were killed, and their bodies were taken to Gaza.
03
The body held after his death
Asaf’s mother, Clara, recalled that on October 16, 2023, the family was told there was a high probability he was dead. She said the Shin Bet concluded from a Hamas video on November 27 that he was no longer alive. The IDF confirmed his death on December 2, based on findings from Gaza. His family held an initial funeral in Tel Aviv on December 4; his body remained in Gaza.
04
Return and burial
Asaf’s remains were returned from Gaza on November 2, 2025. After forensic examination, the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed his identification. He was buried in Tel Aviv on November 4, 2025, in a second burial after the family’s 2023 funeral.
05
Family work in his memory
Saphir’s eulogy recalled their shared years and the family life they built. Clara later said the family established a scholarship fund with the Peres Academic Center and began work on a Reservists’ House in Asaf’s name. Ynet also reported that the Sunflower Program and an Education Ministry curriculum drew on his character and values.