Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 264,900. Haifa has a mixed population of Jews and Arabs giving an example for peaceful co-existence.
Yohai Ben-Nun ' onMouseout='HidePop("85054")' href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Haifa">Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 264,900. Haifa has a mixed population of Jews and Arabs giving an example for peaceful co-existence. The Arab population used to be predominantly Christian, while some of the Jewish...
,
PalestinePalestine is a conventional name used, among others, to describe a geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands.As a geographical term, Palestine can also refer to 'ancient Palestine,' an area...
—June 6, 1994,
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
, NY) was the sixth commander of the
Israeli Sea CorpsThe Israeli Navy is the naval arm of the Israel Defense Forces, operating primarily in the Mediterranean Sea in the west and in the Gulf of Aqaba , Red Sea, and Gulf of Suez in the south...
.
Biography
Yohai Ben-Nun was born in
HaifaHaifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 264,900. Haifa has a mixed population of Jews and Arabs giving an example for peaceful co-existence. The Arab population used to be predominantly Christian, while some of the Jewish...
and raised in
JerusalemJerusalem is the capital of Israel and its largest city in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if disputed East Jerusalem is included...
. His parents were members of the
First AliyahThe First Aliyah was the first modern widespread wave of Zionist aliyah. Jews who migrated to Palestine in this wave came mostly from Eastern Europe and from Yemen. This wave of aliyah began in 1881–82 and lasted until 1903. An estimated 25,000–35,000 Jews immigrated to Ottoman Syria during the...
. Ben-Nun joined the
PalmachThe Palmach was the regular fighting force of the Haganah, the unofficial army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
in 1941 and spent three years training and eventually rising to the rank of a squad leader. In 1944, he joined the Pal-Yam, the sea corps of the
PalmachThe Palmach was the regular fighting force of the Haganah, the unofficial army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
. In a covert operation in 1945, he sank two British
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
ships.
At the outbreak of the
Independence WarThe 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known by Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation and by Palestinians as the Catastrophe , was the first in a series of wars fought between the newly declared State of Israel and its Arab neighbours in the long-running Arab-Israeli conflict.The war...
he founded
Shayetet 13Shayetet 13 is an elite Israel Defense Forces naval Special forces unit. The unit is considered one of the top-three SF units in Israel . S'13 is the unit that specializes in maritime hostage rescue and counter-terrorist missions...
, the Israeli naval commando unit. He commanded a force who sank the Egyptian Navy flag ship- Emir Farouk destroyer , an operation for which he was awarded the
Hero of IsraelHero of Israel is an Israeli military decoration that was awarded during the War of Independence.When the IDF was first established in May 1948, a system of decorations had not yet been instituted, but many soldiers who had distinguished themselves in battle were recommended by their officers for...
decoration.
Yohai Ben-Nun volunteered for an extremely risky mission. He was to ride an explosive boat (similar to an Italian MTM one) and aim it at an Egyptian destroyer. Because the Egyptians would spot the boat and maneuver to avoid it, it had been decided that it would be guided by a volunteer sitting astride it. The volunteer would jump at the very last moment- just 50-100 meters from the target. Even if the Egyptian searchlights spotted the e-boat, it would be too late for avoidance maneuvers. Yohai and the boat were maneuvered as close as possible by rowboat and the e-boat was launched with Yohai astride. Yohai's mates began to row away after the explosion, but then they heard a voice. Yohai appeared. Once on board the rowboat, he explained that the Egyptian search lights had grown completely dark just as he was near enough to aim his boat and leap off.
Yohai Ben-Nun continued to serve in the Israeli Navy after the war and in the
Sinai WarThe Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, was a military attack on Egypt by Britain, France, and Israel beginning on 29 October 1956....
he served as the commander of the INS Yafo taking part in the capturing of an Egyptian destroyer. After the war he returned to command Shayetet 13.
Ben-Nun was appointed the commander of the Israeli Navy in 1960, a position he used for creating a larger fleet with an attack capability.
Although he retired in 1966, during the
Six-Day WarThe Six-Day War of June 5-10, 1967 was a war between the Israel army and the armies of the neighboring states of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. The Arab states of Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria also contributed troops and arms. At the war's end, Israel had gained control of the...
Ben-Nun volunteered for service and fought in the Naval operations and on the
Golan HeightsThe Golan Heights is a strategic plateau and mountainous region at the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon Mountains and remains a highly contested land straddling the borders of Syria and Israel. Two-thirds of the area is currently governed by Israel...
.
As a civilian, Ben-Nun founded a semi-governmental company, חקר ימים ואגמים בע״מ (Israel's Oceanographic and Limnological Research Ltd), for scientific research related to oceanographic and freshwater subjects. He was Director General from 1968-1982. After the
Yom Kippur WarThe Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to October 26, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of...
, he joined the protesters who called for the resignation of the government.
Yohai Ben-Nun died on June 6, 1994, in
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and was buried in kibbutz
Ma'agan MichaelMa'agan Michael is a kibbutz in Israel. It is currently the largest kibbutz in the country, with a population of over 1,400 residents , and falls under the jurisdiction of Hof HaCarmel Regional Council.-Geography:The kibbutz is located 30 km south of Haifa and 70 km north of Tel Aviv and lies east...
.
A marine research foundation, The Admiral Yohai Ben-Nun Foundation for Marine and Freshwater Research, has been established in his name.
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