He was injured when an explosive device detonated inside a booby‑trapped building that the battalion’s lead platoon had entered during a clearing operation.
By Hezy Laing
In February 2024, IDF soldier Matanel Ben‑Shabbat, a 20‑year‑old combat fighter from Ashdod, arrived at Soroka University Medical Center in Be’er Sheva without a pulse or heartbeat after being critically wounded during fighting in the Gaza Strip.
Matanel served in the Givati Brigade’s Tzabar Battalion, which was operating in the Shuja’iyya area of Gaza City during one of the brigade’s most intense urban‑combat pushes of the war.
According to the IDF, he was injured when an explosive device detonated inside a booby‑trapped building that the battalion’s lead platoon had entered during a clearing operation.
The blast caused catastrophic injuries, including massive blood loss, and medics on the scene reported that Matanel lost consciousness within seconds and went into cardiac arrest before evacuation.
A helicopter crew from Unit 669, the IDF’s elite Combat Search and Rescue unit, evacuated him under fire, performing continuous CPR throughout the flight to Soroka.
Hospital trauma director Prof. Moti Klein stated that Matanel arrived with “no detectable heartbeat and no spontaneous breathing,” and that resuscitation efforts continued for approximately 20 minutes before cardiac activity returned.
Trauma surgeons initiated an emergency thoracotomy, massive transfusion protocol, and vascular stabilization procedures, ultimately saving his life but determining that both legs had suffered irreversible damage.
Bilateral amputations were performed to prevent further deterioration, and within 48 hours Matanel regained consciousness in the surgical ICU.
His parents, Shimon and Yael Ben‑Shabbat, remained at his bedside, and Soroka officials reported that more than 1,500 messages of support were sent to the hospital for him during the first week.
In March 2024, he was transferred to the Sheba Medical Center at Tel HaShomer, where he began intensive rehabilitation under the supervision of Dr. Ronen Debi, head of orthopedic rehab.
Sheba’s prosthetics team fitted him with advanced microprocessor‑controlled prosthetic limbs similar to the Ottobock C‑Leg system used by many IDF amputee veterans.
By mid‑2024, videos released by Sheba showed Matanel taking his first steps with parallel bars and later walking independently with prosthetic support, drawing widespread attention across Israeli media.
Former IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi visited him during rehabilitation and praised his determination, calling him “a symbol of courage, life, and the spirit of the IDF.”
Today, Matanel continues rehabilitation and has become an inspiration for wounded soldiers nationwide, speaking publicly about resilience, recovery, and the medical teams who saved his life after he arrived at the hospital without a pulse.
