Missing IDF soldier turns up at home
Elite unit soldier goes missing during nighttime training session in south Israel; appears at his home late Thursday night
An Israel Defense Forces combat soldier who went missing during an advanced training exercise in a southern forest turned up at his home late Thursday night.
The soldier, 21-year-old Nadav Haiman, lives in a moshav near Ashkelon.
IDF and police forces launched an extensive search for the soldier in the early morning hours after he did not return from the training session.
The training session was promptly stopped and IDF forces were called in to scour the area. An IDF helicopter assisted the troops.
One of the moshav's residents said, "During our search we suddenly spotted the soldier walking along one of the moshav's paths towards his home. He entered his home, and we heard the cries of joy."
Soldier's friends during search (Photo: Tsafrir Abayov)
A tracking device carried by the soldier stopped transmitting signals in the early morning hours. The device is used to keep track of the soldiers' whereabouts during training exercises.
After receiving information from his parents, the IDF estimated he had disappeared for personal reasons.
According to the soldier's comrades, at some point during the exercise he detached himself from the group and broke out running into the woods.
Meanwhile, the southern district of the Israel Police asked for the public's help in locating the missing soldier.
IDF officials estimated that the soldier did not disappear because of dehydration, as the training session took place overnight.
The Haruvit Forest where the incident took place is located on the western limit of the Judea coastal plain, near the communities of Kfar Menachem, Gefen, and Tirosh.
Shmulik Hadad contributed to the report
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