Shlomo Ron, 85, of Kibbutz Nahal Oz, celebrated Simchat Torah with his wife, daughters and grandson, who were staying over to sleep in his home on the morning of the holiday, October 7, 2023. He was unarmed. When he heard the terrorists at his door, he sat down on the sofa in his living room and pretended to be an unwell man living on his own, while his wife, daughters and grandson hid in silence in the protected room. When the terrorists entered his home, they found Shlomo seated on the sofa, convincingly playing the lead role in the play he had devised. They showed him no compassion and shot him in the head, leaving the house without first checking to see if there were any other family members hiding in the house. Shlomo Ron was murdered, but his ingenuity and bravery saved his family.
