Pedaya was born on the eighteenth of Nissan 5761, during Chol Hamoed Pesach, April 11, 2001, at Hadassah Hospital, and grew up in Otniel. As a child, he loved playing imaginative war games with his siblings, using Playmobil or other action figures. He also loved drawing, a passion he continued as he grew older, along with carving small shapes and figures out of wood. Pedaya was athletic and trained regularly, especially in preparation for his army service. He practiced Capoeira and became quite skilled at it.
At the age of fifteen, while driving with his parents and sister to Jerusalem, their car was attacked by terrorists. His father was murdered, his mother was severely wounded, and his sister was injured by a bullet. Pedaya was lightly wounded, but the traumatic event left a lasting impact. In the years that followed, every day of high school was a courageous step forward. He remained determined to fulfill his lifelong dream of serving as a soldier and officer in the IDF, a dream that grew even stronger after the attack.
In the army, following the path of his older brother Shlomi, may his memory be blessed, he was accepted into the Sayeret Givati unit. After completing officers’ training, he became a platoon leader in the Tzabar battalion of Givati. Called up on Simchat Torah, he fought in Kfar Aza and later led his soldiers into Gaza at the head of the brigade. On the sixteenth of Cheshvan, he and ten of his soldiers were killed when a missile struck their armored vehicle.
Pedaya dreamed of marriage, raising a family, and settling in Otniel. He planned to study education and become a teacher. He is survived by his mother and eight siblings.
** The information on this page is part of the 'Yizkor' commemoration project by the Ministry of Defense / the 'La'ad' website by the National Insurance Institute, in memory of the fallen. We strive for accuracy and apologize for any errors. For corrections or comments, please contact us here: https://aaciremembers.org/contact-us/ ***
