I am trying to locate someone I met more than 20 years ago in Israel. 
I discovered some old letters and sent a letter to the return address,
but it was returned to me.  Among the old letters was his military ID
number.  Is it possible to locate someone with this number?  I
remember enough Hebrew to use the Bezeq telephone directory and I
found 4 listings with the same name.  Is it possible to us the
military ID to at least find out what city he lives in?  If so, how
would I go about it?

Thank you.

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Clarification of Question by mskantor-ga on 28 Aug 2002 09:33 PDT

To Morningstar:  it is an Israeli ID. number.

---

Clarification of Question by mskantor-ga on 29 Aug 2002 03:17 PDT

Thank you for all comments and information.  To clarify, there is no
intention to disclose personal information of any kind.  The question
pertained to process only--it it possible to do and what is the
appropriate resource.

Mskantor, 
 
Thank you for your clarification. 

As you may have noticed, Google Answers researchers are wary of (and
prohibited from) discussing personal information about individuals,
even if it might be publicly available on the web. However, in this
case, I can help you with the process by providing names and contact
information for government and non-profit sources that can help you.

If you have your friend's name, last known address, and his Israeli
military ID number, it is *possible* to try and find out his current
location. Whether you actually succeed in doing so is the challenge.
Since this person is your friend, it will be more effective if you
personally contact the sources listed below.

To keep everything proper, I suggest you make inquiries with official
Israeli military sources and veterans' organizations. They may say
"No", but they may also help you, or at least refer you to someone who
can.

I assume that you live in the United States. If so, I would start with
the following U.S. association. Although their membership consists of
Jewish members of United States military forces, they have ties to
Israel and can give you some helpful suggestions:

   Jewish War Veterans of the U.S.A. 
   1811 R Street, NW 
   Washington, DC 20009. 
   Tel: 202-265-6280
   Email: jwv@jwv.org
   Web: http://www.jwv.org/

As mentioned in my comment below, you should also contact the Israel
Defence Forces directly:

   IDF - Israel Defense Forces 
   Assistance Division 
   IDF Spokesperson 
   Itamar Ben Avi 9 Tel Aviv, Israel
   Tel: 1-972-03-608-0215 
   Fax: 1-972-03-608-0334  
   Email: info@mail.idf.il   
   Web: http://www.idf.il/newsite/english/main.asp 

The largest veterans' association in Israel is "Tzevet". Although
their web page is in Hebrew, perhaps you understand enough of it to
read their address and other contact information:

   Tzevet
   IDF Veterans of War Association 
   Web/home page: http://www.tzevet.co.il/
   Web/contact info: http://www.tzevet.co.il/

If not, check with the "Jewish War Veterans of the USA" noted above:
they have been associated with Tzevet for many years and should be
able to give you Tzevet's contact information in English.

You may hear about another Israeli veterans' organization called the
"Israel War Veterans League", but their members served primarily in
World War II.

One suggestion: some organizations distribute newsletters to their
members in which you can place ads asking about a particular veteran.
If you're lucky, a fellow soldier may recognize your friend's name and
let you know. Be sure to ask about newsletters when you contact anyone
listed here.

There is a link on the IDF's web site to the following Ministry of
Defense organization:

   The Fund and Unit for Guidance of Discharged Soldiers 
   http://www.hachvana.mod.gov.il/

The Fund's web site is in Hebrew, but they have an online inquiry form
(http://www.hachvana.mod.gov.il/writeus.htm) where you can submit
questions. If you understand enough Hebrew to fill out and submit the
form properly, it seems worth a try.

You can also contact non-profit foundations in Israel that work with
veterans. The following information was obtained from:

   Giving Wisely 
   The Internet Directory of Israeli Nonprofit
   and Philanthropic Organizations
   http://www.givingwisely.org/index.html

   Here are some appropriate foundations:

   The Joseph S. and Caroline Gruss Life Monument Fund 
   for Assistance to I.D.F. Ex-Servicemen 
   c/o Naomi Freund
   8 Hatzfirah St.
   P.O. Box 8052
   Jerusalem 93102, Israel
   Tel: 1-972-02-561-7176  
   Fax: 1-972-02-566-0549  
   Email: lmf@netvision.net.il  
   Web: http://www.gruss.org.il  

   Zahal Disabled Veterans Fund 
   c/o Mr. Ilan Egozi
   49 Shmuel Barkai Street, Afeka
   P.O. Box 39262
   Tel Aviv 61392, Israel
   Tel: 1-972-02-646-1603  
   Fax: 1-972-03-642-1316  
   Email: keren@beit-halochem.org.il  
   Web: http://www.beit-halochem.org.il  

   Zehava Gold Memorial Scholarship Fund 
   for Disabled I.D.F. Veterans 
   Poalim Trust Services Ltd.
   11 Hanegev Street
   P.O. Box 27
   Tel Aviv 61000, Israel
   Tel: 1-972-03-714-3388  
   Fax: 1-972-03-714-3624
   Email: n/a
   Web: n/a  

These sources should give you a good start on the process of tracking
down your friend.

Thank you,
Huntsman


Search Terms & Google Results - 

   idf veterans association
   ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=idf+veterans+association

Thank you for your excellent research.  Your answer was prompt,
respectful and professional and provided me with relevant information
I was unable to find after searching the web for several hours. Your
advice regarding contacting the organizations was well-informed and
prudent.  Now for the hard work---brushing up on my Hebrew!

Dear mskantor - 
    
    When you referr to Military ID are you speaking of US Military or
another Countries Military ID?

Regards,
morningstar

Upon further thought, I would like to add that any attempt to locate a
member of this organization could be considered a hostile act
considering their situation.  I recommend extreme caution even though
I feel certain your intention is entirely legitimate and benign and
that you probably never gave a thought to the security implications of
your question.

Please don't take this as a personal comment on you, but you have
raised a potentially touchy subject.

The editors may also decide this is a legitimate question and leave it
posted.

Mskantor,

It's true that we want to avoid revealing anyone's personal
information.

Why not find out if this is possible from the most authoritative
source? The home page of the Israel Defense Forces is here:

   IDF - Israel Defense Forces
   http://www.idf.il/newsite/english/main.asp

The following contact information is at the bottom of their home page:

   Assistance Division
   IDF Spokesperson
   Itamar Ben Avi 9 Tel Aviv, Israel
   Fax: +972-3-6080334 
   Phone: +972-3-6080215
   Email: info@mail.idf.il  

Send a message to the IDF's email address -- don't include your
friend's ID number unless they ask for it -- and find out if they can
look him up.

Do you have a relative or friend living in Israel who could make local
inquiries for you?

Thank you,
Huntsman

Hi mskantor-ga,

It seems strange to me that no one suggested what to me seems obvious:
if you only found 4 listings with the name of the person you're
looking for, why not write/call all 4 of them and ask if they are your
friend?

Also, I couldn't understand from your question if you actually called
the 144 telephone directory, or used the online version
www.144.bezeq.com. In the previous case, you might want to try the
online one, to save you some Hebrew frustration (the website is in
Hebrew, but still it's easier than talking to a living person I
imagine). There is an English website for the Israeli Yellow Pages
http://www.d.co.il/english.html, but it only lists businesses, still
maybe it would come in handy.

Hope this helps,
dannidin

dannidin