Yoni Troy is a Canadian from Montreal who immigrated to Israel with his family around 2007.
He enlisted in the Israeli army in 2017. Describing this experience in 2019, Yoni wrote, “When I applied to become an Israel Defense Forces officer, a doctor blocked my application because I have asthma. I was crushed. I always dreamed of serving as an officer. I became determined to prove that my asthma wouldn’t stop me. By working out intensely, I improved my breathing. Then, after appearing before eight army doctors over four months and one medical board, I began officers’ training.”
Troy is a son of Gil Troy, a historian, author, columnist and a “distinguished scholar” at McGill University. The Jewish News Syndicate published an article on Gil in April 2024, writing, “Parents should instill as much Jewish identity, values and history in their children as possible with an understanding ‘that an attack on Israel is an attack on them,’ Troy said. ‘We’re going to raise a generation of Zionist Jews with fluency and identity,’ he said. ‘New Jews with the willingness to defend themselves when necessary but building, rebuilding and dreaming always, which is what Zionism has always been about.’”
Gil has written articles about all of his children, including one focused on Yoni and published in January 2017 in the Jerusalem Post titled, “A letter to my son as he enlists in the Israeli army.”
He states, “Dear Yoni, We named you Jonah, the dove of peace, but, today, joining the Israeli army made you an instrument of war. Of course, that’s only half the story. The IDF fights for justice, dignity, and most important, self-defense. The cliché remains true: Israel would disappear if young heroes like you stopped defending us – and peace will appear when our neighbors stop attacking us. Once, the Colt .45 revolver was the Wild West’s ‘Peacemaker’; today, you and your buddies are the Middle East’s peacemakers – protecting the civilized world against Islamist terrorism.”
Gil published two more articles about Yoni’s service: one in August 2018 congratulating him on graduating from officer’s training, and another in May 2019 reporting that he had been “gassed” in Gaza. In the latter article, Gil writes, “Last month, my son Yoni and a friend were patrolling along the Gaza border. It was a Friday and, as usual, thousands of Gazans, mostly manipulated and bullied by Hamas, were rioting – yet again mocking the international community’s promises and Israelis’ hopes when Israel left Gaza in 2005. As usual, IDF soldiers lobbed tear gas canisters into the mob, trying to protect our citizens and secure this legitimate border, without causing Palestinian casualties. As Yoni and Itzhak exited their Humvee, the winds suddenly shifted. Whoosh. The tear gas overwhelmed them, burning their eyes, constricting their lungs.”
After finishing his service, Yoni attended Herzog College as an education student, and also wrote articles online.
Yoni was featured in an Oct. 14, 2023, Instagram video taken at an Israeli military base, indicating he had returned to service.
Yoni has three siblings that have also served in the Israeli military and are included in this database: Aviv Troy, Dina Troy, Lia Troy.
One of Yoni’s grandfathers is the now-deceased billionaire real estate investor, Marcel Adams.
