Elhanan Tannenbaum
Elhanan Tannenbaum, (Hebrew: אלחנן טננבוים, born 12 August 1946) is an Israeli businessman and formerly a colonel in the Israel Defense Forces, who was kidnapped for some years by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Kidnapping
Elhanan Tannenbaum was captured after being lured under the false pretenses of a drug deal. He was traveling on a forged passport. Tannenbaum's capture was announced on 16 October 2000.
His capture is believed to have been conducted by Imad Mugniyah, a senior member of Hezbollah. The capture was executed by Sheik Kais Obeid, an Israeli Arab, a grandson of former Knesset member Diyab Obeid, who crossed the lines to become senior officer for Hezbollah. Obeid was a close friend of Tannenbaum.
Prisoner exchange
Tannenbaum was released in January 2004 as part of a prisoner swap with Hezbollah. The swap, mediated by Germany, resulted in the exchange of 435 prisoners held by Israel in return for Tannenbaum's release and the return of the bodies of three soldiers killed during an ambush along the Israeli-Lebanese border.[1] Following his release, Tannenbaum was placed under arrest for his illegal actions that led up to his capture. He agreed to a plea-bargain and admitted to the reasons behind his travel to Dubai and described the details of his capture. In exchange, he was not tried for any crime and served no jail time.[2] Among the 435 people released were Mustafa Dirani and Sheikh Abdul-Karim Obeid. These two individuals were kidnapped, in 1994 and 1989 respectively, for use as bargaining chips in the effort to secure the release of the most famous of the Israeli MIAs, Ron Arad. Fearing the release of these men would end any hope of finding Arad, his family attempted to take legal action to prevent their release. Nothing came of this effort.
In December 2006, Tannenbaum, for the first time, admitted that he went to Dubai to complete a drug deal. He had expected to make $200,000 (€152,000) on the deal.[3]
References
- ^ "Mid-East prisoners welcomed home". BBC News. 2004-01-29. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
- ^ "Tenenbaum´s Saga Ends". Arutz Sheva. 2004-08-03. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
- ^ Israeli freed by Hezbollah in 2004 admits drug deal International Herald Tribune, 20 December 2006
External links
- ICMIS Biography on Tannenbaum
- ICMIS collection of media articles on Tannenbaum and other missing Israeli soldiers.
- Israeli captive 'lured' by Hezbollah BBC News, 17 October 2000
- Middle East foes swap prisoners BBC News, 29 January 2004
- Israel doubts freed captive story BBC News, 17 February 2004
- Israel to probe prisoner exchange BBC News, 3 July 2004