Fallen officer had been married less than a year

Relatives speak of Maj. Ro'i Rosner, 27, who died in clashes with Gaza gunmen.

By HAVIV RETTIG GUR
Rosner 248.88 (photo credit: Channel 10)
Rosner 248.88
(photo credit: Channel 10)
Maj. Ro'i Rosner, 27, killed in a battle with Hamas fighters Thursday near Kissufim in the Gaza Strip, left behind a wife of 10 months, his parents, and a younger brother who had been mobilized to reserve duty for the Gaza operation. A company commander in the Haruv Battalion of the Kfir Brigade, Rosner had extensive expertise in urban warfare. Some of this experience was gained when his battalion was stationed in the Hebron area, where it conducted operations against terror cells in the city and its environs. On Thursday morning, Rosner led a force on a patrol near Kissufim when the soldiers came under heavy fire. An antitank rocket was fired toward the force, mortally wounding Rosner and moderately wounding another soldier. Rosner was evacuated to hospital, where he died of his wounds. Ro'i's brother, Yaniv, was in the middle of combat training at the Tze'elim base when he heard of his brother's death. Yaniv had received an emergency call-up notice on Saturday night and was preparing to join the Gaza fighting. Ro'i grew up in a religious family in Holon, where the family still resides. He married his girlfriend Sharon only 10 months ago, and the couple returned bought an apartment in Holon just last month. A career officer who did his undergraduate studies during his military service, Ro'i was set to begin his master's degree studies shortly. He was a champion runner as a youth and enjoyed playing tennis on weekends, his family said. According to relatives, they last saw Ro'i two weeks ago Saturday. The entire family had gone out for dinner, but the gathering was interrupted when Roi received an urgent call to return to his unit because IDF operations against Hamas forces in Gaza were commencing. Ro'i studied at the Yavneh religious-Zionist school in Holon. After hearing of his brother's death, Yaniv told reporters he had prayed and read Psalms for his brother's safety while Ro'i was fighting in Gaza. Rosner was buried at the Holon Military Cemetery Thursday evening.