Israeli backpacker Ofer Cohen, who traveled the world for 13 years and visited over 40 countries, died in an accident at the Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe last week at the age of 33, Ynet reported.
He was "a special person who made everybody he met along the way feel like his best friend," his sister Tamar Cohen Yogev told Ynet.
Zimbabwe police suspected that Cohen, who was working as a skydiving instructor in a nearby location, was swimming next to the falls and was dragged away by the currents. In a video, released by Cohen only three weeks ago, he can be seen joking with a client that being vegan won't make her any safer during the jump.
His body was found at the Zambezi river, 400 meters away from the falls.
Cohen began to travel the world after his IDF service as a medic. After visiting Singapore, he fell in love with traveling, eventually combining his new-found passion with his job as a skydiving instructor. He returned to Israel only for holidays. In early February, Cohen posted a video on Facebook introducing Sylvester the cheetah, rescued as a cub. The cheetah was raised by the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, until it was attacked by a leopard and died from its injuries.
Ofer Cohen was laid to rest at the Kiryat Anavim Cemetery.