metro
Loss Of A
L egend
Slain police commando
Detroiters mourn the death
of one of Israel's best and bravest.
David Sachs
Senior Copy Editor
L
ast week's terrorist attacks that
killed eight Israelis outside the
southern resort town of Eilat
tore at the hearts of a number of Metro
Detroiters who are devoted to Israel's
fighting forces.
One of the victims was an Israeli police-
man who was a key member of an elite
anti-terror unit that had close ties to the
Detroit Jewish community.
Sharpshooter Pascal Avrahami was shot
and killed as he pursued some of as many
as 20 Arabs who had entered Israel from
the Sinai on Aug. 18. The terrorists slaugh-
tered six innocent civilians who were driv-
ing along the main highway, including two
sisters and their husbands, a bus driver
and another motorist. An Israeli solider
also was slain.
Several of the terrorists were ultimately
killed by Israeli forces, and further civilian
casualties were prevented. Israel launched
an air raid into Gaza later that day that
took out six members of a radical group
that Israel claimed was behind the attacks.
Barrages of rockets then flowed toward
Israeli civilian centers from Hamas-
controlled Gaza. An Egyptian-brokered
cease-fire went into effect on Monday, but
tensions remain high.
The 49-year-old Avrahami was Israel's
most veteran SWAT-team sharpshooter,
deployed to handle crises where civilians
are taken hostage or otherwise in jeop-
ardy. He was awarded the police medal of
valor in 1990 and, in 1995, he received the
medal of distinguished service.
He was killed in the area of the original
attacks a few hours later as the terror-
ists were being rooted out. Ironically,
Avrahami, the legendary anti-terrorist
sniper, was shot in the head by an Arab
sniper while Defense Minister Ehud Barak
and Chief of Staff Benny Gantz briefed
journalists nearby.
The fallen commando, a native of
France, is survived by his wife, Sima, and
three children ages 25, 20 and 18.
Avrahami was well known to members
of the Michigan Chapter of the Friends
of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF). The
local chapter had "adopted" his rapid-
deployment unit called Yamam, provid-
ing support and visiting regularly. When
the Michiganders would visit the Yamam
facilities at Latrun, about halfway between
Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Avrahami would
give them a tour of the shooting range and
a sample lesson on how to use some of the
weaponry.
Hundreds of people — friends, relatives
and fellow officers, including all mem-
bers of the police's top brass, as well as
fellow Yamam officers past and present
— arrived at Mount Herzl Cemetery in
Jerusalem Friday to pay final respects.
Andrew Hiller, a member of the Michigan Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces, tries
out an American-made MP5 machine gun while visiting the Yamam shooting range.
16 August 25 • 2011
Pascal Avrahami
"The Israel Police and the State of Israel
bow their heads before the bravery of
this man, who gave his life for us',' Police
Commissioner Yohanan Danino said in his
eulogy. "There is no doubt that the Yamam
team's actions saved lives yesterday:' he
said.
"You were a role model for us and the
entire people of Israel — a real hero:'
added Avrahami's son Tat. "Many people
are alive because of you, and they don't
even know it."
Help From Michigan
Metro Detroit ties to the slain officer and
his Yamam comrades run deep.
"We adopted the Yamam unit in 2005,
and we built for them a huge $2.3 million
sports center:' said Tamir Oppenheim,
executive director of the FIDF's Walled
Lake-based Michigan Chapter.
"I've just came back from a mission
two weeks ago when I took 17 young guys
from Michigan to Israel, and we visited
the unit.
"The death of Pascal is a big loss',' he
added. "He was a legend in the unit. I've
seen him many times. We visit at least two
or three times a year."
Oppenheim is all too familiar with the
threats of rocket attacks and terrorist infil-
tration that Israelis who live near Hamas-
controlled Gaza endure.
"I was born and raised in a kibbutz
around the Gaza strip:' he said. "My sister
still lives in the kibbutz, and they are suf-
fering every day. It's a nightmare for those
civilians."
Andrew Hiller of Franklin, who will
graduate from the University of Michigan
Medical School next spring, was one of
the 17 "next generation" local FIDF mem-
bers who visited Yamam two weeks ago.
Andrew, the middle son of supermarket
executive Jim Hiller, plans to become an
orthopedic surgeon and shares his father's
strong support of Israel.
"At the Yamam base, we sat down with
the unit's commanders',' Andrew Hiller
said. "They told us what they do and about
their commitment to protecting Israel —
often in crowded, urban settings or hos-
tage situations.
Legend on page 17
No Peace In
Sight In Gaza
N
ative Israeli residents of Metro
Detroit had strong reactions
to last Thursday's violence
emanating from Hamas-ruled Gaza.
"Israel knew a
terrorist attack was
coming, but were
unable to prevent it,"
' said businessman
Dany Saar of West
Bloomfield. "You can-
not protect against
Dany Saar
anything and every-
thing, but you need
to investigate it and learn where you
missed it.
"There's a rolling escalation of vio-
lence between Israel and Gaza, and
you never know how far it's going to
go. Certainly, Israel is trying to avoid a
major operation in Gaza. But one thing
leads to another."
What lies ahead along Israel's bor-
ders with Gaza and Egypt?
"I think Israel will
have to deal with this
insecurity and insta-
bility in Gaza for the
foreseeable future,"
said Hannan Lis, a
Farmington Hills
businessman.
Hannan Lis
"I don't see Hamas
renouncing violence
or turning over
control of Gaza to the Palestinian
Authority," Lis said. "I don't see civil
rule of law in Gaza for a long, long
time. I think people wielding the
weapons in Gaza will not give them up
peacefully. The Palestinians' own self
interest is not being served by this.
"This is a long-term problem that
Israel does not have full control of
unless it is willing to go back and reoc-
cupy Gaza — which no Israeli govern-
ment, right, left or center is interested
in doing." Li
- David Sachs