Hayim Katsman

Hayim Katsman (חיים כצמן; 3 October 1991 – 7 October 2023) was an American-Israeli peace activist and academic. He was murdered in the Holit massacre in Israel, on 7 October 2023.

Life
Katsman was born in Israel on 3 October 1991. His parents immigrated to Israel from New York City in 1990. His mother was originally from Cincinnati, and his father was from Seattle. His maternal grandparents were both Holocaust survivors. Katsman lived in Petah Tikva, but after completing his mandatory IDF service, he moved to kibbutz Holit out of a desire to "revive" the community. He initially worked as a car mechanic, before becoming a gardener for the kibbutz. He later opened a bar there.

Katsman attended Open University, where he studied philosophy and political science, before pursuing a master’s degree in politics from Ben-Gurion University, where he led the adjunct professors' union. He moved to Seattle to pursue a PhD in international studies from the University of Washington. While in Washington, he taught Hebrew at a Seattle synagogue and was a co-cordinator of the university's Israel-Palestine research group. Katsman returned to Holit after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. He completed his degree remotely, winning the Baruch Kimmerling prize (given by the Association for Israel Studies) for best graduate paper in 2020 and graduating in 2021. His dissertation focused on religious Zionism in Israel.

Katsman was opposed to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, and refused to visit Israeli settlements there. He was involved in several activist groups, including Machsom Watch and a group that organized "protective presence" shifts for Palestinian communities in the Hebron Hills. He testified for Breaking the Silence, and was also involved with volunteer work in Rahat.

Katsman was working as a lecturer on philosophy, politics, and Israeli society at the time of his death. His academic research focused on religious Zionist communities.

Death
Katsman was in the kibbutz of Holit when it was attacked by Hamas militants on 7 October 2023. He and his neighbor were hiding in a closet together in his home, and when they were found he shielded her with his body; she survived. She was then taken by Hamas militants to Gaza, but was abandoned by her captors. She was able to take a four-month-old baby and a four-year-old child back to Holit.

Katsman was 32 years old at the time of his death. He was buried on 12 October in Petah Tikva, at the Yarkon Cemetery.

Katsman's friends and family have said Katsman would not have wanted his death to be used as justification for the 2023 Israel-Hamas war.