Shai Siman Tov (IDF Spokesperson’s Unit)

An IDF officer critically wounded in Gaza War was promoted in recognition of recovery and return to service.

By: Barney Breen-Portnoy, The Algemeiner

IDF officer Shai Siman-Tov — who was critically wounded when a tunnel collapsed on him under the Shuja’iyya neighborhood in the Gaza Strip during Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014 — will be promoted to the rank of colonel in recognition of his recovery and return to the army, the Israeli military announced on Thursday.

At the time of the incident, Siman-Tov was a lieutenant colonel commanding the Golani Brigade’s 12th Battalion.

After a lengthy rehabilitation process, Siman-Tov — whose injuries left him paralyzed and in need of a wheelchair — returned to service in the IDF in October 2015 and is now a team leader at the Tactical Command College.