Amatzia Chen

Amatzia "Patzi" Chen (; born 1940) is a former Israeli Tat Aluf (Brigadier General) who served as a commander in the Shaked patrol during the Six Day War and the commander of a special patrol force in Division 143 which was named after his name "Force Patzi" in the Yom Kippur War, under the command of Ariel Sharon (who later became the 11th Prime Minister of Israel).

Biography Chen was born in Kibbutz Hulda named Amatzia Haimovich to David and Sima Haimovich, who were among the people that came to reside in Hulda with a group named "Bitzur" from Romania at the end of the 30s. As a youth, he was trained in patrols around the kibbutz. In high school, he studied agronomics at a professional school in the Jordan Valley, until his enlistment in the IDF on 1959.

Military service When he enlisted in the IDF, he volunteered for the Paratroopers Brigade, where he was assigned to the Paratrooper Battalion 890. In the paratroopers Amatzia underwent a training course as a combatant and took part in training and operational activities in the battalion and brigade, later becoming a squad commander. While being in officers course he met a cadet from the Shaked patrol and requested joining them. At the end of the course, he was appointed commander of the platoon in the Shaked brigade until his service ended in 1962. Under his command, he and his force fought in the Suez Canal, carried out reconnaissance missions and military operations to obtain combat intelligence, and also pursued Egyptian commandos and artillery officers.

After the War After the war, Amatzia became a member of Armored Corps. From 1976 to 1979 he was the commander of the Reserved Armored Brigade, 434th Brigade (also named "The Steel Tracks"). Later he commanded the Reserve Division 220 and then the training base at Tze'elim. In the 80s he studied and taught at the National Security College.

Later life Amatzia graduated from the IDF with the rank of Tat Aluf (Brigadier General) in 1991, and since then he has been working as a road and infrastructure contractor. Amatzia publishes articles on military matters in various journals, with the aim of motivating a change in the IDF. He lives in Karmei Yosef.