Meir (Miro) Vaknin, a 56-year-old resident of Bat Yam, was identified as the fourth fatality in the missile strike on the city. He was married and a father of three
Meir (Miro) Vaknin, a 56-year-old resident of Bat Yam, was identified as the fourth fatality in the missile strike on the city. He was married and a father of three.
Earlier, the names of three other victims were cleared for publication: Michael (Miki) Nahum, 61, a local resident and father of four; Bella Ashkenazi, 94; and Efrat Saranga, 44.
The names of the remaining victims have not yet been released, but Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that five of the deceased were Ukrainian citizens. Among the victims were also two children, aged 8 and 10, and an 18-year-old youth.
Since the start of the conflict, 24 civilians have been killed. Authorities still fear for the life of a woman listed as missing at the Bat Yam site.
Efrat Saranga had been married for the past eight years to Ofir. She was the eldest of three siblings and left no children.
Bella Ashkenazi’s son and grandson were injured in the strike and are currently hospitalized at Ichilov Hospital. Her granddaughter, Shani Buana, told Ynet: “There was no protected room (mamad) in their apartment. There is a shelter in the building, but both my grandparents were in need of nursing care. My grandfather is 100 years old and uses a walker. My grandmother, 90, was completely immobile. In recent years she suffered from dementia and was confined to a nursing bed in the living room.”
She added: “It was impossible to get both of them down to the shelter every time the siren went off. I believe that’s also why my uncle didn’t evacuate—out of solidarity. He couldn’t run to the shelter and leave his parents unprotected.”
