Youssef Beniste

Life and remembrance

Youssef Beniste was a young merchant and a son of Yehuda Beniste. Like his brother Ibrahim, his life is only thinly documented in the published record beyond his work and family ties.

He was abducted in the summer of 1985 and reported killed in December 1986. His body was not recovered. Sources variously place his kidnapping in July or August, a difference this memorial leaves visible.

Memorial record

Community role

Son of Yehuda and brother of Ibrahim Beniste

Kidnapped

Summer 1985

Reported fate

Reported killed in December 1986; his body was not recovered

Record status

Burial place unknown

Also recorded as

Joseph Beniste, Youssef Benisti

Research note: Schulze gives 18 August 1985; another chronology gives 18 July. His first name also appears as Joseph.

Sources and research notes

Primary source: Kirsten E. Schulze, The Jews of Lebanon: Between Coexistence and Conflict, 2nd revised and expanded edition (2009), printed pages 170–175; PDF pages 103–106.

Kirsten E. Schulze attributes the campaign to the Organization of the Oppressed of the Earth, a group that claimed links with Hizb'allah. Contemporary accounts differ on some dates, occupations, spellings, and the fate of individual victims; those differences are preserved rather than silently resolved.

• Jewish Telegraphic Agency — background report (1986)
• American Jewish Committee archival report (1985)
• L'Orient-Le Jour — the Jamous family appeal (2025, French)