Staff Sergeant Sivan Simcha Asraf

Daughter of Osnat and Itzik

Sister of Tair (25) and Yaheli (6th grade)

Sivan was born in Ashkelon in May 18, 2003. She was a beautiful baby. At first, her parents wanted to call her Sitvanit, the Hebrew name for the Colchicum flower, but since she was born near the Hebrew month of Sivan, they gave her the name Sivan. Her middle name was Simcha (Hebrew for Joy) and her mother testifies that this name suited her personality, for she was always happy and joyful.
Sivan studied at the Makif D Darka Rabin high school in Ashkelon and graduated with honors. She loved going to school and appreciated the personal attention the teachers dedicated to students. Her homeroom teacher was her favorite teacher in particular.
Sivan left behind a loving family: her mother Osnat, an art teacher, her father Itzik, an Electra employee, her sister Tair, 25, with a law B.A. graduate, and her younger sister Yaheli, a 6th grade student at the "Psagot" school in Ashkelon.
Sivan left behind her lifemate, a fighter in the Golani division.

Sivan enlisted in the IDF on October 24, 2021. It meant the world for her to make sure her contribution will be meaningful. She was assigned to the ICT Corps and went through training in the Ramat Hovav training base. At the end of her training, she was transferred to the Re'im home base, where she was assigned to the Nahal Oz outpost associated with the northern division in the Gaza brigade. Her role at the outpost was ICT coordinator, and as part of that role she was responsible for the integrity of all the communication cabinets in the operations room. She was required to be available around the clock for this purpose. Sivan was dedicated to her role and fulfilled it with utmost professionalism. She acted out of a deep understanding of her calling and out of the realization that the field observers would not be able to function properly if she doesn't take care of the communication failures she was assigned to attend.

On Friday night, October 6, 2023, Sivan celebrated with her best friend, the late Shachaf Nissani, her upcoming discharge. Sivan was supposed to be discharged on October 23, 2023. The weekend of the "Black Sabbath" was the last one that Sivan spent at the base. The celebration was happy and cheerful, Sivan was photographed with a crown on her head that her friends had made for her that read "Last Shabbat"... The soldiers decorated the room where the celebration was held, prepared refreshments and spent time together.
On Saturday morning, October 7, 2023, they woke up in a panic to the sound of alarms and the sounds of heavy artillery being fired at the outpost. Terrorists who infiltrated the base started shooting everywhere. Sivan ran with her friends to the bomb shelter barefoot, dressed in pajamas and without her personal dig tag or mobile phone. She called her mother Osnat from another soldier's mobile phone who had found shelter with her. In their short conversation, Sivan informed Osnat about the terrorists' infiltration into the outpost, she told her that she loved her and hung up. Osnat continued to correspond on WhatsApp with the soldier who explained that the conditions in the hiding place did not allow a conversation between them and she urged Osnat to get help. Osnat called Sivan's top commanders, and the the magnitude of the disaster became clear to her. The Deputy Brigade Commander was shot and was evacuated to intensive care, the battalion commander was killed, and she couldn't get in touch with the company commander at all. Osnat also called the police and informed them about the terrorist infiltration into the outpost.
Sivan's friend who survived the terrorist attack said that the terrorists threw a grenade into the shelter where the soldiers took shelter. Sivan fell on the floor while the soldiers were trying to escape from the shelter. Her friend tried to help her up and pull her up but Sivan fell again. As she lay on the floor, Sivan begged her friend to run away without her as she was injured and would not be able to run with her. The company fled to one of the rooms and then the terrorists threw another grenade at the shelter. These were the circumstances of Sivan's fall.

Sivan's most distince characteristic was her kindness and her willingness to help everyone. When Sivan would walk down the street, she used to donate money to beggars who passed her by. When a new soldier arrived at the base, it was Sivan who volunteered to walk around the base with her, introduce her to the other soldiers and make sure that the shy soldier was accepted socially.
Sivan was beautiful and had a magnetic character. She showered warmth and love towards her friends, loved spending time and traveling with them, and avoided quarreling and holding grudges. She had a rolling, shy laugh that expressed her joy of life.
Sivan's favorite hobby was sports. She loved working out in the gym and walking.
Sivan had many dreams that she wanted to fulfill after the military service: she planned to take the "big trip" after the army in New York that she loved so much. She also planned to study real estate appraisals, English and interior design. The field of interior design that interested derived from her aesthetic aspiration. She expressed this in her neat and meticulous clothing and in the design of her quarters at the outpost, which she turned into a well-kept and homely room.

Sivan's favorite song was "You have you." The Israeli singer Mika Moshe sang the song in Sivan's memory at the cemetery on the thirtieth day of mourning ceremony.
Sivan's favorite book was "The Fighting Lioness", written by Sharon Hayun Ginat.

During the "Black Sabbath" events, Sivan's personal phone was lost and it was not found among her belongings that were transferred to her family. Sivan's friend from the base went to her grave a few months after her fall. According to her, when she arrived at the cemetery, she heard an inner voice in her head. It was Sivan who explained to her that the phone was among the company's belongings stored in the Re'im base. Immediately after the visit to the cemetery, the excited friend went to the Re'im base. To her surprise, while searching through her belongings, she found Sivan's phone inside a pot. Finding the phone was a great comfort for Sivan's family who found on it the videos and photos from her discharge celebration.

This commemorative page for Sivan was compiled using materialspublished in the "Seder Yom" program on Channel 11 and "Kan Darom Ashkelon":

https://www.kan.org.il/content/kan/podcasts/p-686360/706963/

https://www.kan-ashkelon.co.il/news/83154