In an interview with the Israeli daily newspaper Maariv on occasion of his resignation as head of the Israeli Defense Ministry’s developing countries defense assistance division – known by the acronym SIBAT – Maj. Gen. Yossi Ben Hanan said that he sought the advice of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, of righteous memory, before assuming command of the Israeli Defense Force’s armored corps in 1986.

“In Israel, people look up to the Rebbe more than to any known political figure,” said Ben Hanan, who after the Six Day Way in 1967 was featured on the cover of LIFE magazine triumphantly clutching an enemy AK-47 rifle while standing in the Suez Canal.

“Undoubtedly, [the Rebbe] is one of the most impressive Jewish leaders. I sought his advice on many subjects, and there were years when I would learn once a week in a private class on Chasidic thought at a friend’s house in Netanya.” …