The morning of October 7, 2023 began like any holiday: peaceful boats on the Sea of Galilee, empty roads, exhausted soldiers on leave.

By 6:30 am, Amit Govrin, a company commander in the Israeli Defense Forces, had abruptly ended his vacation. A barrage of phone alerts—reporting missiles, infiltrations, and attacks—prompted him into immediate action.

He tried calling his commander. No answer. His subordinates didn’t pick up either.

Although he didn’t have all the details at that moment, he quickly realized that the situation was grave, especially upon arriving in Sderot, an Israeli city frequently targeted by rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.

Hamas had executed the most lethal assault on Israel in decades—resulting in the deaths of 1,200 Israelis and the abduction of 251 individuals to Gaza, some of whom remain hostages to this day.

But with the gravity of the event unclear in the moment, Govrin made two instant decisions: get his soldiers back to base, and get as close as possible to the fighting.

He drove south through deserted streets, grabbed his uniform and rifle from his apartment, kissed his wife goodbye and kept going.

By the time he reached the first town, the picture erased any remaining doubt.

His entire battalion was on leave for a planned break, and he used the time to take his father on a quiet trip through northern Israel . They visited training grounds where Govrin and his soldiers had spent long hours preparing for what they hoped would never come. He walked his father through the terrain, sharing the honor and burden that comes with wearing the uniform. ‘It was the last train before the war,’ Govrin told Daily Mail. ‘We didn’t know that everything we knew was going to change in a day’

On October 6, 2023, former Israeli Defense Force company commander Amit Govrin was on vacation— a rare pause in the constant rhythm of duty. Less than 24 hours later, on the morning of October 7, Hamas militants launched the deadliest attack on Israel in decades — a surprise offensive that would ignite a war still raging two-years later

Additional forces arrive throughout the day and within minutes they were exchanging fire and trying to piece together a coherent defense out of chaos. They fought house to house, often without full kit

He stepped out of his car into Sderot city into burned vehicles and bodies — images he says he will never forget, like an elderly woman in a purple dress lying face down on the road.

Initially told to return north, they pressed towards where Hamas terrorists were instead, moving into two different kibbutz eventually in the Gaza envelope area.

‘I wasn’t with any military gear… I only had my rifle and two magazines in my pocket,’ Govrin recalled. ‘They wanted us to go as one armed unit but there was no time for that.’

At one point he donned a dead soldier’s blood-soaked vest to carry on.

Inside a shelter he found a mother with a baby. She handed the infant to Govrin as soldiers moved them to safety. ‘We looked at each other like we couldn’t believe we were in this situation,’ he said.

At another moment, Govrin’s unit was pinned until an anti-tank weapon was neutralized.

They encountered terrorists hidden among civilians in the narrow, single-story houses of the Gaza envelope. They improvised signals—posting codes in local WhatsApp groups—to reassure civilians they were IDF, not militants.

Over nearly two days Govrin’s team cleared the area and evacuated residents as reinforcements arrived. His other reinforcements came quickly throughout the day, even a reservist arrived after he was armed and continued fighting in the south.

Tactics were ad hoc: clearing rooms, throwing grenades, suppressing entrenched gunmen. At one juncture Govrin’s unit was pinned until an anti‑tank weapon was neutralized; only then could they press forward on their mission

The morning of Oct. 7 began like any other holiday. Peaceful boats on the Sea of Galilee, empty roads, a planned leave for an exhausted battalion. But by 6:30am Amit Govrin was no longer on vacation

‘It took us almost two days to evacuate everyone and to make sure there were no other terrorists in that settlement,’ he said.

The fighting would stretch on months. 

Govrin wound up in some of the most brutal urban battles he’d trained for—’four months in the most difficult place on Earth,’ he said—close-quarters combat inside large buildings and tunnels.

‘Acting without orders was essential to survive and save as many lives as possible,’ he said.

The cost was personal. A bullet lodged in his eye, ending his sight in it permanently. It happened in a what he calls a horrible encounter in the northern part of Gaza a few months into the war.

Govrin says he was in the hospital and went through several surgeries.

What pushed him through pain, terror and exhaustion was duty—specifically, his soldiers.

‘When things go wrong, they look at you. You’re in charge of their lives,’ he said, voice thick with emotion. ‘That was always my biggest motivation—not just completing the mission, but bringing every one of them back home.’

‘It took us almost two days to evacuate everyone and to make sure there is no other terrorists in that settlement,’ Govrin said

‘The best motivation you have, as an officer, as a company commander, is your own soldiers,’ he said, full of emotion. ‘When things go wrong, they look at you. You’re in charge of their lives. That was always my biggest motivation, not just completing the mission, but bringing every one of them back home’

Now 28, Govrin says he never had the luxury of being young. While peers were in college partying, he was leading operations, often going weeks without seeing family.

‘I probably sacrificed some of my best years for our country,’ he says. ‘And I’m very, very proud of that.’

He reflected on the staggering toll—not just in time, but in lives lost and futures upended. ‘Who would have thought that after two years we’d still be there, fighting?’

He spoke of friends lost and others still caught in the war’s grip, ‘praying for an end to this brutal war.’

More than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s war in Gaza, health officials say

But for Govrin, peace has clear conditions: ‘A ceasefire can only be achieved after the return of all hostages and the complete removal of Hamas’ regime in Gaza, along with total demilitarization of the Strip.’

It’s a goal the Trump administration is feverishly pursuing now, but given the unpredictability of Hamas, there are no guarantees. 

Both Israel and Hamas have endorsed parts of President Trump’s 20-point peace plan, but some the same intractable issues from past talks persist. 

After his injuries, Govrin started a new position at the Israeli National Defense college and is now getting his graduate degree at MIT, hoping to pivot his military leadership and take part in helping with national security in the future.