St-Sgt Michael Oxsman

Feb 19, 2002 - St.-Sgt. Michael Oxsman, 21, of Haifa was one of six soldiers killed in a terrorist attack near a roadblock west of Ramallah. Several terrorists opened fire at soldiers at the roadblock, including three off-duty soldiers inside a structure at the roadblock, killing them at point-blank range.

The attack took place at about 9 P.M., a few hours after the troops who had manned the Ein-Ariq outpost for the last few months handed the position over to replacements from the same corps. The outpost, consisting of a roadblock and a few temporary housing buildings, was manned by eight soldiers, five of whom were on guard at the time. Two or three Palestinians apparently opened simultaneous fire at the outpost from different directions, killing six soldiers and injuring one.

Michael was the first of the Oxsman family to immigrate to Israel in 1995, at the age of 15, via the Jewish Agency's Na'aleh program for gifted youngsters. He settled at Kibbutz Sasa in the Galilee.

Yevgeny, a radio-physics engineer, first came to Israel three years ago only to return to Russia. Six months ago, he made aliya, together with Michael's grandmother, Bronia, 89, his elder sister, Svetlana, and her son, Vadislav, now aged six. Michael's mother Olga remained in Gorky to take care of her mother. "I came back to be with my son," says Yevgeny, "but now he's gone."

According to his father, Oxsman was very proud to serve as a combat soldier in the army. "When I told him I was worried about him, Michael told me: 'I sat in the shelter in Sasa, and I know what it means to protect the country.'"

He related yesterday that just a few days ago he purchased a cell phone for Michael, so that the two might keep in touch. "We only made one call on the phone. I asked him how he was doing, and wanted to know where he was serving. He said, 'Turn on the television - that's where I am.'" He was killed together with his good friend St.-Sgt. Mark Podolsky.

"My son was strong," says Yevgeny. "He was intelligent. His whole company came yesterday - they told me how much they all loved him. He said the army was his first home." "He was always surrounded by friends," says Olga. "He loved to swim and dive, and taught himself to play the guitar. He was a fine sportsman and handsome as a god."

Michael Oxsman was buried in Haifa. He is survived by his parents and sister.