Ehud "Udi" Goldwasser ( he, אהוד גולדווסר; 18 July 1975 – 12 July 2006) was an Israeli soldier who was abducted in Israel by

Hezbollah Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...

along with Eldad Regev on 12 July 2006, sparking the

2006 Lebanon War The 2006 Lebanon War, also called the 2006 Israel–Hezbollah War and known in Lebanon as the July War ( ar, حرب تموز, ''Ḥarb Tammūz'') and in Israel as the Second Lebanon War ( he, מלחמת לבנון השנייה, ''Milhemet Leva ...

. His rank was First Sergeant. On 16 July 2008, the bodies of Goldwasser and Regev were returned to Israel in the

2008 Israel–Hezbollah prisoner exchange The 2008 Israel–Hezbollah prisoner exchange took place on 16 July 2008 when Hezbollah transferred the coffins of two Israeli soldiers in exchange for 5 Lebanese militants held by Israel as well as the bodies of 199 militants captured in Lebanon ...

. Israeli officials claimed an examination of the bodies determined that the two reservists were killed during the ambush. A Lebanese minister claimed the soldiers were killed during the Israeli bombing.

Biography

Prior to his abduction at Israel's border with Lebanon, Ehud "Udi" Goldwasser lived in

Nahariya Nahariya ( he, נַהֲרִיָּה, ar, نهاريا) is the northernmost coastal city in Israel. In it had a population of . Etymology Nahariya takes its name from the stream of Ga'aton (river is ''nahar'' in Hebrew), which bisects it. Hist ...

. He was a graduate student at the Technion, the Israeli Institute of Technology, from which he had earlier earned an undergraduate degree in environmental engineering. As a teenager, he lived in South Africa with his parents, Shlomo and Mickey, and two younger brothers. In 2005, he married Karnit, who would later campaign globally for his release. He was interested in environmental conservation, motorcycles, sailing and photography.

Raid

According to the United Nations, the fighting began at around 9 AM when Hezbollah launched rockets on Israeli towns along the Lebanese border, apparently as a diversion. A force then attacked two armored IDF Humvees patrolling the border near the Israeli village of

Zar'it Zar'it ( he, זַרְעִית) is an moshav in northern Israel. Located in the Upper Galilee near the Lebanese border, it falls under the jurisdiction of Ma'ale Yosef Regional Council. In it had a population of . History Zar'it is located on th ...

with anti-tank rockets, and abducted the two soldiers. An Israeli Merkava Mk. II tank was damaged by a 200 kg improvised explosive device, while attempting to give pursuit, killing all four crewmembers.

Prisoner swap

PikiWiki Israel 9023 memorial to ehud goldwasser

On 16 July 2008,

transferred the coffins of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, in exchange for

Lebanese Lebanese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Lebanese Republic * Lebanese people The Lebanese people ( ar, الشعب اللبناني / ALA-LC: ', ) are the people inhabiting or originating from Lebanon. The term may al ...

militant Samir Kuntar and four Hezbollah fighters captured by Israel during the

, as well as the remains of 199 Lebanese and Palestinian militants.

Aerosmith dedication

On 19 September 2006, rock band

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry (guitar), Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whi ...

dedicated their hit song " Dream On" to Goldwasser at the request of his wife."Aerosmith lines up behind abducted IDF soldiers"
, ''Israel21c'', 19 September 2006

References

External links