Aluf ''Aluf'' ( he, אלוף, lit=champion or "First\leader of a group" in Biblical Hebrew; ) is a senior military rank in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) for officers who in other countries would have the rank of general, air marshal, or admiral ...

(res.) Yossi Ben Hanan ( he, יוסי בן-חנן) was born in

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

, Mandate for Palestine in 1945. His father, served as one of the top

Haganah Haganah ( he, הַהֲגָנָה, lit. ''The Defence'') was the main Zionist paramilitary organization of the Jewish population ("Yishuv") in Mandatory Palestine between 1920 and its disestablishment in 1948, when it became the core of the ...

commanders in Jerusalem. During the

Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...

Ben Hanan was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, serving as the operations officer of the 7th Armored Brigade. He was featured on the cover of ''Life'' magazine after the war which showed him triumphantly clutching an

AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian small-arms d ...

rifle, under the caption "Israeli soldier cools off in the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

". In 1973, while on his honeymoon in

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

, then

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Ben Hanan learned of the start of the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by E ...

. Over the course of a few days, he returned to Israel and arrived on the

Golan Heights The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between di ...

on October 8, 1973. Ben Hanan participated in fighting with the Syrians in the holding defence of the

along with then lieutenant colonel

Avigdor Kahalani Tat Aluf (Brigadier General) Avigdor Kahalani ( he, אביגדור קהלני, born 16 June 1944) is a former Israeli soldier and politician. Early life Avigdor Kahalani was born in Ness Ziona during the Mandate era. His parents, Moshe and Sa ...

, and was wounded for the first time, but refused to be evacuated and continued fighting. On October 9, 1973, Ben Hanan took command of the tank company put together from the remnants of the decimated 188th Armored Brigade by Shmuel Askarov, one of the survivors. Leading his command in a battle against overwhelming numbers of Syrian

T-62 The T-62 is a Soviet main battle tank that was first introduced in 1961. As a further development of the T-55 series, the T-62 retained many similar design elements of its predecessor including low profile and thick turret armour. In contras ...

s in the area north of

Quneitra Quneitra (also Al Qunaytirah, Qunaitira, or Kuneitra; ar, ٱلْقُنَيْطِرَة or ٱلْقُنَيطْرَة, ''al-Qunayṭrah'' or ''al-Qunayṭirah'' ) is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in sout ...

, Ben Hanan restored the tactical situation and penetrated with his unit deep into Syrian territory. On October 12, 1973 he was wounded for the third time, but refused to evacuate. He had led a further attack during which his tank was hit by a Sagger

anti-tank missile An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a Missile guidance, guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy Armoured fighting vehicle, heavily armored military v ...

, and Ben Hanan was wounded for the fourth time and rescued from behind enemy lines by

Yonatan Netanyahu Yonatan "Yoni" Netanyahu ( he, יונתן נתניהו; March 13, 1946 – July 4, 1976) was an American-born Israel Defense Forces (IDF) officer who commanded the elite commando unit Sayeret Matkal during Operation Entebbe, an operation to resc ...

, a member of the IDF's elite

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 (''matkal''). It is the prime special ...

and brother of future Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...

.Chaim Herzog (1982) "The Arab-Israeli Wars" Vintage pp.296-297 Ben Hanan received the second highest decoration, the

Medal of Courage The Medal of Courage ( he, עיטור העוז, ''Itur HaOz'') is an Israeli military decoration. The medal is awarded for carrying out acts of gallantry at the risk of life, during combat duty. The medal was established in 1970 (though it has be ...

for his part in the battles of the

.סא"ל בן-חנן יוסף 930536
Award citation at the IDF website Later Yossi Ben Hanan commanded the 7th Armored Brigade, the IDF R&D department, the Israeli National Security College, and the Armored Corps. As a reservist, he attained the rank of

(second highest rank of the IDF). During 1997-2008 he was head of the Israeli Defense Ministry's developing countries defense assistance division, SIBAT.הקשר האפריקאי של יוסי בן חנן, מניף הקלצ'ניקוב מהצילום המפורסם בתעלה
he African connection of Yossi Ben Hanan, the Kalashnikov fan from the famous photograph in the canal'' Haaretz'', July 2, 2009

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ben Hanan, Yossi Living people Israeli generals Israeli Jews 1945 births Recipients of the Medal of Courage Israeli people of German-Jewish descent