עברית
Ofer 'Pushko' Moskowitz, Avocado Farm Manager at Misgav Am, Killed in Hezbollah Rocket Strike
The longtime avocado manager at Kibbutz Misgav Am in Israel’s Upper Galilee was trapped in his burning car after a rocket fired from Lebanon hit. Days earlier, he warned on air: "At any moment a missile or a drone could fall on me; it’s Russian roulette."
Moskowitz (no credit)Ofer ("Pushko") Moskowitz, who managed the avocado crops at Kibbutz Misgav Am in the Upper Galilee, was killed this morning by a direct rocket hit fired from Lebanon that struck his car. Just days before his death, in an interview with Radio Haifa last Friday, Moskowitz warned of the ongoing danger and said: "At any moment a missile or a drone could fall on me; it’s Russian roulette."
Media outlets reported that only six months ago Ofer managed to rehabilitate the avocado orchard in Misgav Am and planted 2,200 avocado trees, after the entire orchard was burned in October 2023 by Hezbollah fire.
Ofer's car was hit inside the kibbutz and began to burn, with him trapped inside. Paramedics were forced to pronounce him dead after he was rescued. The IDF said after the deadly strike: "A short time ago, fire was identified from Lebanese territory toward a community on the northern border. There is damage and there are casualties; the incident is under investigation".
Baruch Golan, head of a ZAKA North District team who handled the impact scene, said: "This is a very difficult scene of a direct hit on a vehicle. When we arrived, the cars were burning, and after firefighting efforts it turned out that inside one of the vehicles a man was trapped with no signs of life. During the work at the scene, several sirens sounded; we had to stop and go into a protected space and return again and again to continue the work ".
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich: "Pushko didn’t just grow avocados. Pushko embodied Zionism. This morning we were informed with immense pain of the murder of Ofer (Pushko) Moskowitz by fire from Hezbollah terrorists. Pushko was among the finest sons of this land—a Zionist and a farmer, connected to the land with every fiber of his being. He loved it, and he loved the region in which he fell on this difficult morning. Heartfelt condolences to his family and to the brave residents of Misgav Am. We will remember you forever. May your soul be bound in the bond of life".
