The child’s name is Rachel Hassan. She was born in Hadera hospital on September 11, 1952, a twin to Nesia (now Zipporah) Hassan. We lived back then in Moshav Bat Shlomo. At 11 months, the twins had diarrhea and were hospitalized at the Rambam hospital in Haifa.

The next day my father was notified that Rachel had died and they gave him a wrapped bundle to bury, probably in Mahane David cemetery near Haifa. My father, blessed be his memory, did not see a body.

My parents actually told us that Rachel was the healthier of the twins, fair-skinned and chubbier (they were not identical twins). A complaint was submitted to the committee on the February 18, 1996.

At the age of 18 the army came to our house and claimed she was a deserter, and ever since doubts and frustrations have nested in our minds.

My sister did some searching and discovered that her sister’s name was changed from Rachel to Hannah, and that her ID had been changed as well. Also, we have lost a document telling us she had died, which we got in 1964 (probably after one of the committees). Nevertheless, the army came to recruit her. It is important for me to add that my brother, blessed be his memory, was an army officer and during his service he looked for the grave and nothing was found, this despite the fact that the committee claimed there was a registered grave.

Yael Shai Dagan