The abduction and killing of Nachshon Wachsman was an incident in which Palestinian

Hamas Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...

abducted

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i soldier Nachshon Wachsman from the

Bnei Atarot Bnei Atarot ( he, בְּנֵי עֲטָרוֹת, ''lit.'' Sons of Atarot) is a moshav in central Israel. Located near Yehud, around 15 kilometres east of Tel Aviv, it is situated in fertile plains at the eastern rim of Tel Aviv metropolitan area ...

junction in central Israel, and held him hostage for six days. The incident ended in a failed Israeli rescue attempt, during which Wachsman, three of his captors and an Israeli officer were killed.

Background

In 1994, Hamas tried to disrupt the

peace process A peace process is the set of political sociology, sociopolitical negotiations, agreements and actions that aim to solve a specific armed conflict. Definitions Prior to an armed conflict occurring, peace processes can include the prevention of ...

between Israel and the Palestinians which it opposed by carrying out a series of suicide bombings.

Abduction

At home on a leave, Wachsman was instructed by the military to attend a one-day training course in

northern Israel The Northern District ( he, מחוז הצפון, ''Mekhoz HaTzafon''; ar, منطقة الشمال, ''Minṭaqat ash-Shamāl'') is one of Israel's Districts of Israel, six administrative districts. The Northern District has a land area of 4,478&n ...

. He left Saturday night after

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...

, telling his parents he would return Sunday night, October 9, 1994. He was last seen by a friend who reported that, after completing the training, Wachsman had been dropped off at the Bnei Atarot junction, a densely populated area in central Israel, where he could either catch a bus or

hitchhike Hitchhiking (also known as thumbing, autostop or hitching) is a means of transportation that is gained by asking individuals, usually strangers, for a ride in their car or other vehicle. The ride is usually, but not always, free. Nomads have ...

, a common practice of Israeli soldiers, to Jerusalem. Israeli intelligence learned that Wachsman entered a car in which there were Hamas militants wearing

kippot A , , or , plural ), also called ''yarmulke'' (, ; yi, יאַרמלקע, link=no, , german: Jarmulke, pl, Jarmułka or ''koppel'' ( yi, קאפל ) is a brimless cap, usually made of cloth, traditionally worn by Jewish males to fulfill the c ...

, who had a

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''

siddur A siddur ( he, סִדּוּר ; plural siddurim ) is a Jewish prayer book containing a set order of daily prayers. The word comes from the Hebrew root , meaning 'order.' Other terms for prayer books are ''tefillot'' () among Sephardi Jews, ' ...

on the dashboard, and Chassidic music playing.

Hostage tape

On October 11, 1994, a videotape was broadcast showing Wachsman, with his hands and feet bound, before a

keffiyeh The keffiyeh or kufiya ( ar, كُوفِيَّة, kūfīyah, relating to Kufa, link=no), also known in Arabic as a ghutrah (), shemagh ( '), (), in Kurdish as a Shemagh ''(''شه‌ماغ'')'' or Serwîn (سه‌روین) and in Persian, as a ...

-covered militant who was displaying Wachsman's identity card. After the militant recited the hostage's home address and identity number, Wachsman spoke, with the armed militant behind him, saying:

The group from Hamas kidnapped me. They are demanding the release of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and another 200 from Israeli prison. If their demands are not met, they will execute me on Friday at 8 P.M."

Sheikh

Ahmed Yassin Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Hassan Yassin ( ar, الشيخ أحمد إسماعيل حسن ياسين; 1 January 1937 – 22 March 2004) was a Palestinian politician and imam who founded Hamas, a militant Islamist and Palestinian nationalist organiz ...

was Hamas leader at the time and had been imprisoned by Israel since 1989. In response to the tape, Nachshon's parents pleaded with world leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister

Yitzhak Rabin Yitzhak Rabin (; he, יִצְחָק רַבִּין, ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77, and from 1992 until h ...

, US President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

, and Muslim religious leaders.

Search and rescue attempt

Rabin sealed Gaza, mistakenly believing that Wachsman had been taken there. The move cut off tens of thousands of Palestinian laborers from their jobs in Israel. He also called Arafat on the telephone and placed full responsibility for Wachsman's well-being on his shoulders. Arafat responded by denouncing the abduction of Wachson as an attempt to "embarrass" the Palestinian Authority (PA). A senior PA official commented that "the PA is committed to undertaking every possible effort to find Wachson, because his abduction is a personal affront to Yassir Arafat." Over the next few days Arafat's PA security forces began cracking down and arresting dozens of Hamas officials and stopping Hamas demonstrations. Over 200 Hamas members were arrested. Eventually the Israeli secret policy,

Shin Bet The Israel Security Agency (ISA; he, שֵׁירוּת הַבִּיטָּחוֹן הַכְּלָלִי; ''Sherut ha-Bitaẖon haKlali''; "the General Security Service"; ar, جهاز الأمن العام), better known by the acronym Shabak ( he, ...

, captured Jihad Yarmur, the driver of the car that had picked up Wachsman. Interrogating Yarmur, they learned that Wachsman was being held in the village of

Bir Nabala Bir Nabala ( ar, بير نبالا; he, ביר נבאלא) is a Palestinian enclave town in the West Bank located eight kilometers northeast of Jerusalem. In mid-year 2006, it had an estimated population of 6,100 residents. Three Bedouin tribe ...

, a location under Israeli control located only ten minutes away from Wachsman's home in the

Ramot Ramot ( he, רָמוֹת, ''lit.'' Heights), also known as Ramot Alon ( he, רמות אלון), is an Israeli settlement and a Jewish neighborhood in the northern part of East Jerusalem. Ramot is one of Jerusalem's so-called " Ring neighborhood ...

neighborhood of Jerusalem. Rabin authorized a military rescue attempt. On Friday October 14, with 24 hours until the ultimatum,

Shimon Peres Shimon Peres (; he, שמעון פרס ; born Szymon Perski; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the ninth president of ...

, and

Yasser Arafat Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf al-Qudwa al-Husseini (4 / 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), popularly known as Yasser Arafat ( , ; ar, محمد ياسر عبد الرحمن عبد الرؤوف عرفات القدوة الحسيني, Mu ...

announced that they had won the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...

. When Peres was asked his opinion on the "peace" that he had achieved in Oslo in light of Hamas' impending deadline, he responded that the peace process involves "calculated risks." Prayer vigils were held in many places. Over 100,000 people representing all religious, political, and social segments of the Israeli population gathered at the

Western Wall The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط � ...

. Responding to a request by Esther Wachsman, Nachshon's mother, many women lit an extra Sabbath candle for her son. At 20:00 that night, at the hour of the ultimatum, elite IDF commandos from the

Sayeret Matkal General Staff Reconnaissance Unit (formerly Unit 269 or Unit 262), more commonly known as Sayeret Matkal ( he, סיירת מטכ״ל) is the special reconnaissance unit (''sayeret'') of Israel's General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, General ...

special forces unit carried out an operation to free Wachsman. It was thought that Wachsman was being held behind an iron door, but in fact it was a solid steel door, and the first explosion only dented the door. The commandos immediately lost the element of surprise, giving Wachsman's captors inside time to shoot him dead and position themselves for the impending firefight. A second explosive charge was prepared and the door was finally blasted open after more than a minute, and after a heavy exchange of fire with gunmen waiting on the stairwell, the commandos reached a second iron door, and had to wait another four minutes for the charges to be set. During this time, the commandos shouted to the gunmen inside to surrender, while the gunmen replied that Wachsman was already dead and that they preferred to die. After the team broke through the door, another exchange of fire took place before the room was secured. In total, three gunmen were killed and two taken prisoner, while the leader of the commando team, Captain

Nir Poraz Nir Poraz (14 May 1971 – 14 October 1994) (Hebrew: ניר פורז) was an Israeli Defence Forces Captain who was killed in action by Hamas during the failed October 14, 1994 rescue mission for IDF soldier Nachshon Wachsman in Bir Nabbalah. The ...

was killed and nine commandos were wounded. Wachsman was found dead in the room. His body was slumped in a chair, wearing a kafiyeh and civilian clothes. He had been shot in the throat and chest at close range. The Wachsman family was informed of his death personally by General

Yoram Yair Yoram Shmuel Yair ( he, יורם יאיר; born August 29, 1944) is an Israeli retired who served in the IDF for 35 years until his release with the rank of major general, in 1998. After his release, he volunteers in the social, educational and ...

Aftermath

In a news conference a few hours after the failed rescue attempt, Rabin, who had authorized it, took full responsibility for it and sent his condolences to the Wachsman and Poraz families. He justified his decision by stating that Israel should do no less than what it expected the PA to do:

"I could not conceive that we would not do what I believe the State of Israel in its war against terror must do; what we actually demanded of the PA and of Arafat, in his capacity as its chairman, during the last week, when the reports were that Wachsman was in the Gaza Strip. Therefore, this is a policy of fighting terror to the bitter end."

Israeli leaders commended Arafat and the PA for their cooperation in trying to locate Wachsman and praised its work. Peres stated in a televised speech on the night of Wachsman's funeral that

"it's clear Hamas is against the two of us srael and the PAbecause the two of us are for peace... Over the last two or three days I believe that Mr. Arafat and the Palestinian Authority did show a readiness to counteract the danger of Hamas."

Environment Minister Yossi Sarid, referring to the PAs crackdown on Hamas, commented that "in the last few days the Palestinian Authority in Gaza has made considerable efforts." Even Israeli hawks such as

Gideon Ezra Gideon Ezra ( he, גדעון עזרא, 30 June 1937 – 17 May 2012) was an Israeli politician. He served as a member of the Knesset for Likud and Kadima between 1996 and 2012, and also held several ministerial portfolios. Biography Ezra's famil ...

admitted to being impressed by Palestinian Security Chief

Jibril Rajoub Jibril Mahmoud Muhammad Rajoub ( ar, جبريل رجوب, born 14 May 1953), also known by his kunya Abu Rami, is a Palestinian political leader, legislator, and former militant. He leads the Palestinian Football Association and the Palestine Ol ...

even as he remained wary of him. On October 20, a senior Hamas leader Imad Falouji declared that Hamas would continue fighting until Israel withdrew from the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Days later, however, Hamas offered Israel a ceasefire. The abduction caused the PA to clamp down on Hamas military activity with Israeli cooperation. In early 1995, more than a hundred Islamic militants were arrested.

Nachson Wachsman

Sergeant Nachshon Mordechai Wachsman ( he, נחשון מרדכי וקסמן, born April 3, 1975, died October 14, 1994) was an

IDF IDF or idf may refer to: Defence forces * Irish Defence Forces * Israel Defense Forces *Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006 * Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917 Organizations * Israeli Diving Federation * Interac ...

soldier who was abducted and held hostage by

for a period of 6 days. A

dual citizen Dual or Duals may refer to: Paired/two things * Dual (mathematics), a notion of paired concepts that mirror one another ** Dual (category theory), a formalization of mathematical duality *** see more cases in :Duality theories * Dual (grammatical ...

and the United States, Wachsman was raised in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. He was the third of seven sons born to Yehuda and Esther Wachsman. His father was Israeli-born, while his mother was born in a German

displaced persons camp A refugee camp is a temporary Human settlement, settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for interna ...

and immigrated to Israel from

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

.His Name was Nachshon Wachsman
OU.org Wachsman volunteered for an elite commando unit of the

Golani Brigade The 1st "Golani" Brigade ( he, חֲטִיבַת גּוֹלָנִי) is an Israeli military infantry brigade that is subordinated to the 36th Division and traditionally associated with the Northern Command. It is one of the five infantry brigade ...

, serving in the Orev Golani.

Funeral

Wachsman was buried on Saturday night October 15, 1994 in the

Mount Herzl Mount Herzl ( he, הַר הֶרְצְל ''Har Hertsl''), also ''Har ha-Zikaron'' ( lit. "Mount of Remembrance"), is the site of Israel's national cemetery and other memorial and educational facilities, found on the west side of Jerusalem beside ...

military cemetery. Wachsman's

Rosh Yeshiva Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primar ...

, Rabbi

Mordechai Elon Mordechai (Moti) Elon ( he, מרדכי (מוטי) אֵלון; born 9 December 1959) is an Israeli Religious Zionist rabbi. He has headed several Orthodox Jewish social organizations and institutions, most notably as Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat HaKo ...

, gave his eulogy. At the request of Wachsman's bereaved father, the rabbi told the crowd of mourners that God did listen to their prayers, and that just as a father would always like to say "yes" to all of his children's requests, sometimes he must say "no" though the child might not understand why. "So too our Father in Heaven heard our prayers, and though we don't understand why, His answer was 'no.'"

Beit Nachshon

Today "Beit Nachshon" at the

SHALVA Shalva ( he, שַׁלְוָה, ''lit.'' Security) is a moshav shitufi in southern Israel. Located in the southern Shephelah near Kiryat Gat, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council. In it had a population of . History The mos ...

Center in Jerusalem, an association for mentally and physically challenged children, is dedicated to Wachsman's memory.

Jihad Yarmur

Jihad Yarmur was convicted of the killing of Nachshon Wachsman. He was released in October 2011 as one of 1,027 prisoners exchanged for captive Israeli soldier

Gilad Shalit Gilad Shalit ( he-a, גלעד שליט, Shalit.ogg, ''Gilˁad Šaliṭ'', born 28 August 1986) is a former MIA soldier of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) who on 25 June 2006, was captured by Palestinian militants in a cross-border raid via tu ...

References

External links

Kidnapping of Soldier Leads Israel to Halt P.L.O. Talks
– published on ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' on October 12, 1994
Mrs. Esther Wachhsman, mother of kidnapped soldier, recalls events of her son's kidnapping
– published on ShalomTV
Israel Holding Arafat Accountable For The Fate Of Kidnapped Soldier
– published on the ''

Milwaukee Journal The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...

'' on October 11, 1994
US Is Pressing Arafat Over Kidnapped Israeli Soldier
– published on ''

'' on October 14, 1994
Israeli hostage slain during rescue attempt 3 Hamas captors, 1 soldier killed in firefight
– published on the ''

Boston Herald The ''Boston Herald'' is an American daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarded eight Pulit ...

'' on October 15, 1994 {{DEFAULTSORT:Wachsman, Nachson 1975 births 1994 deaths Al-Qassam Brigades Operations American Jews Israeli Jews Israeli military casualties Israeli soldiers Israeli terrorism victims Murders of IDF soldiers Israeli people taken hostage Israeli prisoners of war Terrorist attacks attributed to Palestinian militant groups Israeli torture victims People from Jerusalem October 1994 events in Asia Operations involving Israeli special forces People of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict