Brit-Israeli soldier, 19, killed while fighting in Gaza just 2 weeks after birthday as ‘proud’ family pay tribute

A BRITISH-ISRAELI soldier has been killed in Gaza just two weeks after celebrating his birthday. Binyamin Needham, 19, who had lived in Israel for 10 years, was killed in action along with two others, officials said. Binyamin Needham, 19, was killed in Gaza along with two others Combat engineer Binyamin had only been in Gaza for two days when he was fatally injured. He died just weeks after celebrating his 19th birthday. He was serving as part of the Combat Engineering Corps of the 601st Battalion when he was killed. Born in Edgware, north London, Binyamin moved to Israel with his family when he was eight-years-old and was the youngest of six siblings. He had just finished his apprenticeship and professional training and had spent the weekend with his family before he was killed. His sister Orli Ferris said: “He was such a wonderful, wonderful brother and we loved him with all our hearts and we always will. “He will be missed by all of us and so many others, but we will always make sure we remember him in our hearts. “Nothing will be the same now,but we are all very proud of what he did and he was also proud of what he was doing. “He had just finished his apprenticeship and was doing his professional training. “We don’t know the exact details of what happened but he was only in Gaza for two days. He went in on Friday and died Sunday.” Orli vowed to keep her brother’s “memory alive” and said her family has been left “heartbroken”. “He was a wonderful boy and everyone who knew him said the same,” she said. “He died with a pure soul and he died protecting his country. “He would go back to London every year or so to see his siblings who live there.” Binyamin will be buried at a military funeral in Haifa on Tuesday after his body was returned to the family. The IDF said it “shared the family’s grief” and would “continue to accompany them”.