Yahrzeit: Nachshon Wachsman & Nir Poraz

B"H

In two days we commemorate the 16th Yahrzeit of the two soldiers Nir Poraz and Nachshon Wachsman who got killed by Palestinian terrorists.

Exactly one year ago, the Israeli newspaper MAARIV contained an interview with Wachsman's mother Esther who, after his death, became a public figure and a popular member of the national religious party. Esther Wachsman was born in the US and is the child of Holocaust survivors from Europe.

In her interview she accused the former government (1994) under Yitzchak Rabin to have hastened the rescue of her son Nachshon. Instead to wait and thus gain time, Rabin sent out a rescue squad from the elite unit "Sayeret Matkal". However, the Sayeret was, according to Esther Wachsman, not experienced enough for such a combat but another special trained squad was just pushed away. Obviously Ehud Barak wanted to have his favourite elite unit (the Sayeret) in the picture.

Esther Wachsman continues with the words that after the failed rescue mission, Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin cried. Later on, when Esther and Yehudah Wachsman came to mourn Yitzchak Rabin (in November 1995), his widow Leah told them that she only saw her husband twice crying during his lifetime. One time was when Nachshon Wachsman got killed.

The first part of the video showing Nachshon Wachsman is accompanied by the song "Shema Israel" sung by the popular Israeli singer Sarit Hadad.

The second part showing Nir Poraz is accomanied by a song from Yehudah Polliker.

Exactly 15 years ago, the week Nachshon Wachsman got kidnapped the the terrorists, a friend of mine celebrated a house party. She and three other friends had moved together into a new apartment in the Bavarian town of Fuerth. Then, I lived in the nearby Nuremberg and went to their party. When I arrived I was told that an Iranian guy had also been invited and if I would mind. Yes, I did mind but the guy had already arrived with another Iranian friend. Muslims tend to bring their own kind when they are invited to a party given by non - Muslims.

I sat down and started talking to some people I knew but those two Iranians who turned out to have studied with one of the guys moving into the new apartment, kept on staring at me. I have never spoken one single word to them and someone must have told them that I am Jewish. Eventually I moved on sitting in another room and found some interesting people in the kitchen.

This incident always comes into my mind when I think of Nachshon Wachsman. A day before he was shot, I was stared at by two Iranians. Stared at with pure hatred.

In Israel, we do not hear a lot from Nir Poraz' mother. She seems to avoid going public and sometimes it may be even sad for her that everyone is concentrating on Nachshon Wachsman but leaving out her son who did not hesitate to rescue Nachshon.

A few months ago, Yehudah Wachsman gave an interview where he spoke about his mourning period and that he just could not get over about his son's tragic death. Eventually he ended up in a support group with other mourning parents and the psychologist asked him to do the following:

"Stand here in front of all of us and imagine you are standing in front of your son. Now speak to your son and tell him what you feel".

Yehudah Wachsman that, at this moment, he expressed his anger towards his dead son. "Why did you get into the car (of the terrorists who had dressed up as religious Jews) ? Why didn't you check and see that they are Arabs ? Why did you have to taka a ride ?" Then the father broke out in tears.

It was a very emotional interview and showed the suffering of the parents until today.