Sergeant First Class Alexander Bondaryov was laid to rest at the city’s military cemetery after being killed in a traffic accident on Route 6 while on his way to an operational mission in southern Lebanon. The fatal incident occurred when he stopped to help two female soldiers whose vehicle had broken down on the side of the highway.

Despite the urgency of his mission, Bondaryov chose to assist the stranded soldiers. While doing so, he was struck by a passing vehicle whose driver apparently did not see him. Medical teams arrived quickly but were forced to pronounce him dead at the scene.

Bondaryov immigrated from Kyrgyzstan at the age of two and served as a career soldier for ten years. He was due to be discharged in the coming days and planned to join the police to be closer to his wife and two young children. He is survived by his wife, Angelica, and their children, Liam and Alin.