Survivor of the Nova Festival massacre takes his own life: farewell to Roei Shalev

Roei Shalev, survivor of the Hamas attack at the Nova Festival, has died by suicide

Roei Shalev, survivor of the Nova Festival massacre carried out by Hamas, took his own life on Friday night. The 29-year-old Israeli, who lost his partner Mapal Adam during the attack on 7 October 2023, was found dead in his burning car near Netanya. According to Israeli media, shortly before taking his own life, he posted a message on social media saying he “couldn’t go on” and asking for forgiveness.

Security cameras had filmed him at a petrol station filling a fuel canister. Shortly afterwards, firefighters discovered his burning car at a motorway exit and, inside, Shalev’s lifeless body. The police have opened an investigation to clarify the circumstances of the tragedy.

On 7 October 2023, during the Nova Festival massacre, Roei Shalev and his partner Adam were dancing with a friend, Hilly Solomon, when rockets fired by Hamas interrupted the music. The three fled but were hit while seeking shelter under a car. Shalev was wounded by two bullets in the back and waited seven hours for help, next to the lifeless bodies of the two women.

A few days later, Shalev’s mother took her own life. ‘In a single week, I lost three of the most important women in the world to me,’ he wrote in a message shared during a fundraiser for survivors. In the months that followed, the young man said he suffered from severe trauma, flashbacks and insomnia.

Friends and family say he never recovered from the loss and grief. In a statement, the Shalev family confirmed his death and asked for respect and privacy. The Nova Tribe Community, an association that brings together survivors and family members of the festival victims, expressed ‘deep sorrow at the untimely death of a beloved friend.’ ‘Roei Shalev was one of the pillars of our community,’ the statement read, ‘and his loss is incomprehensible. We will remember him for his strength, generosity and commitment to others.’

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(Photo: © AndKronos)