Avraham Botzer, former Israeli navy commander, dies

Maj. Gen. Avraham Botzer, the eighth commander of Israel’s navy, passed away on Sunday at the age of 83. He will be buried with full military honors on Monday afternoon.

Botzer was born in Poland in 1929 and moved to Mandatory Palestine with his family in 1936 at the age of 7. In 1946, at the age of 17, he joined the naval branch of Palmach, the pre-state Jewish militia, and participated in operations that brought Jews into Palestine.

With the establishment of the State of Israel and the subsequent outbreak of the War of Independence, Botzer enlisted in the naval branch of the newly formed IDF, where he eventually served as head of naval operations.

In 1955, Botzer was a part of the Israeli delegation sent to England to purchase naval destroyers but returned to his position as head of naval operations for the Sinai Campaign in 1956.

Botzer was appointed Deputy Commander of the navy in 1961 and head of naval personnel in 1964. From 1968-1972 Botzer commanded the Israeli navy.

Upon retiring from the IDF, Botzer served for over 20 years as the CEO of the Trans-Israel pipeline.He also studied law and worked as an attorney.

In a press release on Sunday the IDF Spokesperson said “the IDF salutes Maj.-Gen. Avraham Botzer for his salute the achievements, his legacy and his longstanding contribution to the security of Israel.”

Botzer is survived by his wife and a daughter.