Jad Amer, brother of the late Jawad Amer 's Mafalfaleh (Druze Bulgur with Vegetables) Recipe

“A Place at the Table” is a commemorative project that documents the favorite dishes of those lost on October 7 with the help of their families.

In Hurfeish, near the Lebanon border, Jad Amer prepares his family recipe for mafalfaleh, a Druze bulgur dish. The coarse bulgur soaks up the juices of the tomatoes and the heat of the peppers, the zucchinis are almost fully melted, and tender chickpeas dot the bulgur. “This is a dish that’s been passed down in Druze kitchens for centuries,” Jad says. But, he adds, that there are regional variations in Lebanon and villages in Israel have their own version of malfaleh (sometimes known as shalbata).      

“We’re four siblings — three brothers and one sister. Of all of us, only Jawad loved this dish. He always asked my mother to make it, and she would cook it especially for him,” Jad adds. Now, he prepares it in memory of his younger brother.

 A week after returning from a trip to the United States in the fall of 2023, Staff Sergeant Jawad Amer was killed on the Lebanese border. He was 23. On October 9, as commander of a frontline operational unit of the 300^th Brigade (Baram Formation) in the Lebanon sector, he was called into action alongside the brigade commander following a report of a terrorist cell that had infiltrated the area near the community of Adamit. Jawad was killed in combat, along with Egoz unit reservist Master Sergeant Gilad Molkho (33) and Lieutenant Colonel Alim Abdallah (41), the brigade’s deputy commander and Jawad’s close friend. With their bodies, they prevented a massacre; it’s believed that the cell had planned to abduct civilians along the northern border — much like what happened near Gaza.

The youngest child of Rashda and Akram, Jawad was a brother to Jad, Nabiah, and Nawal. From a young age, he knew he would join the army and become a combat soldier like his father, uncle, and two older brothers. “100% enlistment in the family,” his father says proudly. Jawad went even further, earning three certificates of excellence during his seven years of military service. The last one was awarded less than a month before his death.

Even as a child, his father says, Jawad was a top student with a strong interest in computer programming and math. “He had so many friends and everyone who knew him could see how kind-hearted he was and how much joy he brought to those around him,” his brother adds. His smile was one of his trademarks, and everyone who served with him remembers how that warm, disarming smile was the first thing to greet them when they arrived at the base.

Jawad loved spending time in nature, going to the beach every weekend, and staying active. Jad says they used to work out together at least four times a week, but they also traveled often — both around the country and abroad. “Jawad loved discovering new places,” he says. His greatest dream was to travel the world.  

In their small, close-knit family, Jad feels the absence of his younger brother every minute of the day. “The bond between us was so much more than just a connection between brothers. We were best friends, everything we did, we did together,” he says. “It’s hard for me to speak about him in the past tense, because everywhere I look, in every corner, he left behind laughter, warmth, and love.”