On the eve of the Sukkot holiday, September 29, 2004, Yuval Abebah (alt spelling - Abebeh), 4, and Dorit Benisian, 2, were killed by a Qassam rocket fired from Gaza at the Israeli town of Sderot. Yuval and Dorit were the first victims of the Qassam rockets, which became more lethal as they grew in size.
Yuval and Dorit were cousins. They were children of immigrants from Ethiopia, visiting their grandmother. They were playing outside the house, on Haggai Street, beneath an olive tree, when the Qassam hit them. They suffered massive injuries and both died shortly afterwards in hospital. About 30 people were wounded in the attack, for which Hamas claimed responsibility.
Yuval's mother described the last few moments of her son's short life: "We were sitting outside my mother's house. My son was playing. Everything was normal. I watched him. He was having so much fun. Suddenly there was a distant explosion. We understood it was a Qassam, but didn't stop to think where it had landed. And then there was another explosion right next to me. Everything was black. Everyone was screaming. I searched for my Yuval. Suddenly I saw him next to me. His body was mutilated. Yuval was everything to me," she said. Yuval was deeply attached to his mother, having lost his father, Undeshaw, as a baby. The couple, who immigrated from Ethiopia, were married in Israel and settled in Sderot in 1998.
Boaz Dasta lives across the street from where the rocket fell. His son, also 4, was a friend of Yuval Abebah's, and was excited when he saw Yuval on the television.
The child asked, "'What is Yuval doing on TV?'" said Dasta. Dasta hasn't decided out how to explain to his son that Yuval won't be coming to visit again. Instead he told him that Yuval was hurt. "How will he understand this, he is so little?, asked Dasta.
Yuval Abebah was buried in the Sderot cemetery. He is survived by his mother, Asraso, and four siblings.