Shimon Stein ( born 9 March 1948 ) is an Israeli diplomat . He was the Israeli ambassador to Germany from 2001 to 2007 . On 1 January 2001 , the first day of his ambassadorship , he was sent to Berlin . Toby Axelrod writes in the 2002 '' American Jewish Year Book '' : Stein not only had the unenviable task of representing his country to one of its most important supporters during an exceptionally difficult time in Israel 's history , but he also followed a very popular ambassador , Avi Primor , who , in pre-intifada days , often criticized his own government — in fluent German — and was a darling of the country 's official , intellectual , and media circles . Stein quickly cemented strong connections with the government , and consistently challenged unfair criticism of Israel . On 11 August 2002 he attended a memorial marking the 30th anniversary of the Munich massacre , where during the 1972 Summer Olympics Israeli athletes were held hostage by Black September , who eventually killed 11 of them . He was involved in the 2005 deal for Israel to buy German submarines , the first deliveries of which are expected in 2012 , and said it would benefit the German shipbuilding industry . At his farewell reception he summarised his tenure as " exciting , satisfying , frustrating , rewarding , enlightening " . He was replaced by Yoram Ben-Zeev
Munich massacre
Munich massacre
Shimon Stein