‘Sayeret Matkal’ soldier ran off, causing a frantic, day-long search.
By JPOST.COM STAFF, YAAKOV KATZ, YAAKOV LAPPSoldiers 311(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski/The Jerusalem Post))
A soldier from the elite General Staff Reconaissance Unit (Sayeret Matkal) who went missing during a training exercise in the South was found late Thursday night in his parents' home.IDF and police forces searched for Nadav Heiman, 21, the soldier who went missing during a training exercise in the South late Wednesday night. IDF sources said they believed he had bolted for personal, psychological reasons, amid the acute pressures of the training.RELATED:Elite soldier missing during trainingIDF soldier killed in training accidentHeiman, who has been in the army for a year and is close to completing the training segment for the top unit, had been participating in an exercise together with his squad in the Haruvit Forest in the Lachish Region.The squad had completed a grueling part of the exercise, which included carrying stretchers for a number of kilometers.When the group stopped to rest, Heiman suddenly ran off into the forest. His squad members initially thought that he had gone to relieve himself, but went looking for him when he failed to return. He had told a fellow soldier during the trek that he was finding it difficult.Heiman was carrying an electronic transmitter, which apparently stopped working either due to a technical malfunction or because it was disconnected. Officials were concerned that he either fell into a ditch or was hiding and did not want to be found.Large police and military forces scoured the area with the assistance of helicopters, but a neighbor eventually reported seeing Heiman walking into his parents' home.Two years ago, Tamir Naboani, a soldier from the same unit, was killed during a solo navigation exercise in the Arava Desert when he fell off a 15-meter cliff.Solo navigation is part of the training of elite infantry units.
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