Abduction and killing of Nachshon Wachsman

In 1994, Hamas tried to disrupt the peace process 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. He left Saturday night after Shabbat, 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, a common practice of Israeli soldiers, to Jerusalem. Israeli intelligence learned that Wachsman entered a car in which there were Hamas militants wearing kippot, who had a Tanakh and siddur 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-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 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, US President Bill Clinton, 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 Yasser Arafat on the telephone and placed full responsibility for Wachsman's well-being on his shoulders. Arafat responded by denouncing the abduction of Wachsman 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 Wachsman, 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. Eventually the Israeli secret police, Shin Bet, captured Jihad Yarmur, the driver of the car that had picked up Wachsman. The Wachsman family was informed of his death personally by General Yoram Yair. ==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: 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 (, born April 3, 1975, died October 14, 1994) was an IDF soldier who was abducted and held hostage by Hamas for a period of 6 days. A dual citizen of Israel and the United States, Wachsman was raised in Jerusalem. 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 and immigrated to Israel from Brooklyn. Wachsman volunteered for an elite commando unit of the Golani Brigade, serving in the Orev Golani. Funeral Wachsman was buried on Saturday night October 15, 1994 in the Mount Herzl military cemetery. == 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. ==See also==