Rafi Shalev was the soldier who was involved in evacuating Yotam Haim’s body after he had been mistakenly killed by Tzahal.
Rafi, moved by his experiences handling Yotam’s remains and meeting Iris Haim, Yotam’s mother, decided he wanted to do something meaningful. He decided to donate a kidney. Rafi shared the news of his decision with Iris and wrote to her, “Thanks to Yotam, we are adding life.”
Two days later, he contacted Matnat Chaim and underwent a battery of tests, which culminated in his donating a kidney in August 2024 to a young man named Nir Barzilai. Iris accompanied Rafi and Nir throughout the process.
The article was published in the Jerusalem Post on July 10, 2026.