While the investigation is still ongoing, evidence points to human error as the cause for Wednesday morning’s tragic tank accident in the Golan Heights that led to the death of First-Sergeant Uriel Liwerant, 21, a hesder yeshiva soldier and resident of Efrat.

Officials report that the engineering bridge constructed for the exercise, part of the company commander course appears to have been intact and in accordance to safety regulations, pointing out that the 12-meter long bridge was crossed by 10 tanks before Liwerant’s tank flipped over during the crossing. The commander, Sgt. Uriel, had his upper torso out of the tank [a common reality for tank commanders] and therefore, had nothing to grab onto when the tank flipped. The young soldier was crushed to death.

Uriel z”l was a talmid at the Har Etzion Hesder Yeshiva, described by his colleagues in the army and beis medresh as an extremely modest individual. He completed basic training a month ago, but rather than return to his torah studies immediately, he volunteered for the tank commander’s course.

His father Aaron was in Israel but his mother, Joannie, was in the United States when the tragic news hit. She arrived in Eretz Yisrael on Thursday morning and the levaya began in front of the main shul in the Rimon area of Efrat, then making its way to the Har Herzl Military Cemetery in Yerushalayim for kvura at 1:00pm.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)