Glossary of Israeli Parties and Personalities - 1948-1981
Abba Houshi -- See Houshi, Abba.
Abdullah Ibn el Hussain (1882-1951) -- Emir of Transjordan
(1921-1946); King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (1946-1951).
Born in Mecca, displaced from the Hejaz by Ibn Saud, he accepted
the throne at Amman from the British Mandatory Government on a
temporary basis. Subsequently attempted to broaden his influence
which brought him into direct confrontation with Haj Amin el
Husseini, the Mufti of Jerusalem. Maintained sporadic contacts
with leaders of the Jewish Agency with a view to arriving at plan
which would leave the Arab parts of Palestine under Hashemite
rule. In May 1948 served as pro forma commander of the regular
Arab forces invading Palestine. In December 1948 convened the
Jericho Meeting of Arab Notables which called for the
incorporation of the West Bank in his kingdom. In 1949-1950,
following the signature of the Israel-Jordan Armistice Agreement,
conducted negotiations with Israel culminating in the initialling
of a non-aggression pact. Because of internal and external
opposition the pact was never signed. Assassinated by
Palestinians upon leaving the Al Aksa mosque in Jerusalem.
Abu Ageila -- Important road junction and dam, in the north of
the Sinai peninsula, some 45 km. southeast of El Arish. Captured
by the IDF in 1949, 1956, and 1967. Returned to Egypt and
demilitarized under the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty of 1979.
Acre -- Mediterranean coastal city, at northern end of the bay
which bears its name. One of the most ancient populated sites in
Israel. Captured by the IDF in May 1948. Mixed Jewish-Arab
population.
Abdul Hamid (1842-1918) -- 34th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and
Halif of Islam from 1876 to 1909, when he was evicted from the
throne by the young Turks who suspected him of conspiring against
them.
Achdut Ha'Avoda-Poale Zion (Unity of Labor) -- Left wing party
which merged with Mapai and Rafi in 1968 to form the Israel Labor
party. Following the Six Day War many of its members, including
the party's spiritual leader Yitzhak Tabenkin, supported the idea
of Greater Israel; however, another leader, Yigal Allon,
advocated the return of some of the administered territories
which would not endanger Israel's security.
Afula -- Town in the Valley of Esdraelon, located near a
road junction between the Coastal Plain and Galilee and the
Jordan Valley. Founded in 1925 and planned as the comercial
center of the region, it came into its own only after the
establishment of the State of Israel.
Aguda, Agudath Israel (or Yisrael) (Association of Israel) --
Orthodox religious political party, founded at the Kattowitz
convention of 1912, more traditional than the National Religious
Party. Although not a Zionist party and not a member of the World
Zionist Organization, it has been willing to cooperate with
Zionists in areas of immigration, settlement and defense before
the establishment of the state and has participated in all
Knesset elections since 1948. It has participated in government
coalitions but, except for the period of 1949-1952, has not
accepted cabinet posts so as not to share responsibility for
decisions concerning religious matters contrary to its beliefs.
Ahad Ha'am (Asher Ginsburg) (1856-1927) -- Zionist leader
and thinker. Born in the Ukraine; immigrated to Palestine in
1922, but visited several times before. A staunch critic of both
the political and practical Zionists, he insisted on giving first
priority to the establishment in Palestine of a spiritual center
for the Jewish people.
Aharonowitz, Z. -- See Aranne.
Akiva (Rabbi) -- One of the foremost Jewish sages in the
period following the destruction of the Second Temple. Mentor and
supporter of Bar Kochba (q.v.).
Al Aksa Mosque -- Silver-domed mosque at the southern end of the
Temple Mount. Named Al Aksa -- the last, most remote -- because
of its distance from Mecca and Medina, Islam's holy cities.
Mentioned in the Qur'an and considered sacred by Muslims.
Earliest remains date back to the eighth century AD.
Alexandroni -- One of the six original territorial
infantry brigades, taken over at its inception by the IDF from
the Hagana (q.v.). Its area of recruitment and responsibility was
centerd on the coastal plain, north of Tel Aviv; its name derives
from the Alexander Brook, which flows into the Mediterranean
south of Hadera. Names of brigades served also as the cover names
of their commanders.
Al Hamishmar -- Daily newspaper of Mapam (United Workers' party)
(q.v.).
Aliya Hadasha (New Immigration) -- Political party established
in 1942 by immigrants from Germany and Austria, against the
background of their difficult absorption -- economic and
cultural. In 1948 it joined with Haoved Hazioni, a non-socialist
component of the Histadrut, and some General Zionists in the
establishment of the Progressive party (q.v.).
Allenby, Field Marshal Edmund Henry (1861-1936) --
Commander-in-chief of the British and Allied forces who captured
Palestine from the Ottoman Turks towards the end of World War I,
in 1917-1918; subsequently British High Commissioner in Egypt
until his retirement in 1925.
Allon, Yigal (1918-1980) -- Military commander, leader of the
Labor movement. Born in Kfar Tavor, Lower Galilee; from an early
age member of the Hagana; one of the first soldiers of the
Palmach, he served as its commander from 1945 until its
disbandment in 1948. Commanded some of the outstanding operations
during Israel's War of Independence (1947-49). One of the
founding members of Achdut Ha'Avoda (q.v.), 1946. In 1950 entered
active political life; first elected to the Knesset in 1955.
Served as a cabinet minister from 1961 until 1977, in the Labor
(1961-67), Immigrant Absorption (1967-69), Education (1969-74)
and Foreign Affairs (1974-77) portfolios. Instrumental in the
formation of the first Alignment between Mapai and Achdut
Ha'Avoda in 1965, he nevertheless failed to achieve a central
leadership position. In 1980 he planned to contend for the
leadership of the Labor party, but died before the party
conference took place. Author of the Allon Plan for Judea,
Samaria and the Gaza Strip which, calling for a differentiation
between security and political boundaries, would leave
strategically important areas in Israel hands, while returning to
Jordan the areas most heavily populated by Arabs.
Almaliah, Avraham (1885-1967) -- Teacher, journalist, leader of
the Sephardic community. Born in Jerusalem; banished to Damascus
during World War I. Represented the Sephardic community in the
National Committee of Palestine Jewry under the British Mandate;
at Zionist Congresses; in the Jerusalem Municipal Council. Member
of the First Knesset on the Sephardic List.
Altalena -- Arms ship brought by the Irgun (q.v.) to Israel in
the course of the first truce, June 1948. It was sunk by IDF
artillery off the coast of Tel Aviv following a controversy in
which Ben-Gurion, suspecting a coup, insisted on the immediate
delivery of the arms to the government, a demand rejected by the
Irgun High Command.
Altman, Dr. Arieh (1902-1982) -- Revisionist leader. Born in
the Ukraine, immigrated to Palestine 1925, studied in the United
States where he became one of the leaders of the Revisionist
Zionist movement and a close collaborator of its founder, Ze'ev
Jabotinsky (q.v.). From 1937 headed the Revisionist movement in
Palestine. Following the failure of its list in the elections for
the First Knesset and its merger with the Irgun-based Herut
(q.v.) in 1950, Altman was elected to the Knesset in 1955 and
served three terms.
Amalek -- Biblical tribe, descendants of Esau, brother of Jacob.
Enemies of the Jews in all generations.
Amman -- Capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
Aqaba (Gulf of) (or Gulf of Eilat) -- Continuation of the Red Sea
to the northeast, adjoining the eastern shore of the Sinai
Peninsula, and the western shore of the Arabian Peninsula. Israel
(Eilat) and Jordan (Aqaba) possess outlets at its northern end.
Arab League -- Organization of Arab states. Founded in 1945 by
seven Arab states, independent or nearly independent at the time,
it has come to include all independent Arab states, with and the
PLO raised from observer status to full membership in 1974.
Recognised as a regional organization by the UN. Its decisions
are not binding on its members. In 1979, following the signature
of its Peace Treaty with Israel, Egypt was suspended from the
League, and its headquarters were moved from Cairo to Tunis.
Arab Legion -- Armed forces of Transjordan, and subsequently
of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Commanded by a British
officer, Glubb Pasha, (q.v.) until 1956.
Arava -- Long and narrow valley, part of the Great Rift,
extending from the southern tip of the Dead Sea to the Gulf of
Aqaba. The armistice line between Jordan and Israel follows its
lowest points.
Aranne, Zalman (1899-1970) -- Labor leader. Born in Russia,
immigrated 1926. Secretary of the Tel Aviv Labor Council; Member
of the Central Committee of the Histadrut. In 1948 Secretary
General of Mapai (q.v.); member of the Knesset 1949-1969;
Minister of Education (1955-60; 1963-69). A stout follower of
Ben-Gurion for many years, they parted ways over the Lavon Affair
(q.v.).
Argov (Grabovski), Meir (1905-1963) -- Labor leader. Born in
Russia; immigrated 1925. Secretary of Petah Tikva Labor Council.
Member of the National Committee of Palestine Jewry under the
Mandate. Joined the British Army in 1940, served in the Jewish
Brigade. Among the signatories of Israel's Declaration of
Independence. Member of the Knesset 1949-1961, Chairman of
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
Ariav, Chaim (1895-1957) -- General Zionist leader, journalist.
Born Lida, Russia. Immigrated 1912. Turkish officer on the
Armenian front, World War I. Director General of the
Farmers'Association 1931-1951. Member of the Knesset 1951-57.
Arlosoroff, Dr. Chaim (1899-1933) -- Labor leader and ideologue.
Born in the Ukraine, immigrated from Germany 1924. In 1930
appointed Head of the Political Department of the Jewish Agency
for Palestine, in which capacity he negotiated with the Nazi
German authorities for the Ha'avara -- transfer of Jewish
property to Palestine -- in the form of German goods. His
assassination, still unsolved, on the Tel Aviv beach, has given
rise to an acrimonious debate between left and right whose echo
resounded loudly well into the 1980s.
Ashdod -- Port in the south of Israel. Named after an
ancient Philistine city.
Asian Socialist Conference -- Bombay 1956, coincided with
the Sinai campaign. Since there were no Arab Socialist parties at
the time, Israel, represented by former Prime Minister and
Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett, was the only participant from the
Middle East.
Attlee, Clement (1883-1967) -- British Labour leader, Prime
Minister from 1945 until 1951.
A-Tur -- Arab quarter in the east of Jerusalem atop the Mount
of Olives.
Auja-el-Hafir (Nitzana) -- Ancient road junction, close to some
wells, on the border between Sinai and the Negev.
Auster, Daniel (1893-1963) -- General Zionist. Born in Galicia,
immigrated 1914. Member of the Jerusalem Municipal Council in
Mandatory times. Mayor of Jerusalem 1949-1950.
Avriel (Ueberall), Ehud (1917-1980) -- Mapai, Rafi, Labor party.
Born in Austria. Immigrated 1939. Active in Ha'apala (illegal
immigration) and acquisition of arms. Israel's first diplomatic
envoy to Prague, 1948. Subsequently Director General of the Prime
Minister's Office; of the Ministry of Finance. After a short term
in the Knesset, first envoy to Ghana and later to Zaire.
Azaniah (Eisenstadt), Baruch (1905- ) -- Mapai; Kibbutz
Meuhad. Born in Pinsk, Russia. Immigrated from Germany 1933.
Member of Kibbutz Givat Chaim; active in the kibbutz movement.
Member of the Knesset 1951-69; Chairman of Knesset (Rules and
Regulations; House) Committee.
Ba'al Shem Tov (Israel of Moldavia) (ca.1700-1760) --
Jewish mystic; founder of the Hassidic movement.
Babi Yar -- Near Kiev, Ukraine. Site near which tens of
thousands of Jewish inhabitants of Kiev were massacred by German
Einsatzgruppen soon after the German Army captured the city in
September 1941.
Bader, Dr. Yohanan (Jan) (1901- ) -- Born in Krakov. Leader of
the Revisionist party in Poland and editor of its Polish language
organ. Studied law, economics, philosophy and history. Immigrated
after release from Soviet camp, 1943; jailed by British
authorities for membership in Irgun. Member of the Knesset
(Herut) from 1949 to 1977. Chief Opposition spokesman on economic
matters; Chairman of the Committee on State Control. Member of
the Interparliamentary Union.
Baghdad Pact -- Informal name of the defensive alliance signed
by Turkey and Iraq in 1955, subsequently joined by Great Britain,
Iran and Pakistan. The U.S. participated in its committees and
covered a major part of the budget, but never joined officially.
Its purpose, as part of the containment strategy designed by
Secretary Dulles, was the defense of the northern tier, as a link
between NATO and SEATO. Iraq abandoned the organization in 1959,
after which it lost its strategic significance.
Bahir, Arye (1906-1970) -- Leader of kibbutz movement. Born
in Odessa, Russia. Immigrated 1924; joined Kibbutz Afikim in the
Jordan Valley. Member of the Knesset for Mapai until the split in
1965, when he joined Ben-Gurion in the formation of Rafi; active
mainly in committees dealing with economic affairs.
Bandung Conference (1955) -- First meeting of heads of state
of non-aligned countries, at which the Non-Aligned movement was
founded. Israel's invitation was aborted by a threat of an Arab
boycott of the Conference.
Barash, Asher (1889-1952) -- Born Galicia; Immigrated 1914.
Teacher, editor, writer. Chairman of the Hebrew Writers'
Association.
Barazani, Moshe (1926-1947) -- Member of Lehi (Fighters for
the Freedom of Israel). Captured by British troops in the course
of an operation against an army commander; denied the
jurisdiction of the Mandatory court; condemned to death. Together
with Meir Feinstein (Irgun) committed suicide en route to the
place of execution.
Bar Kochba (Son of the Star) (Simon Bar Kozeba) -- Leader of
the revolt against Rome, 132 AD. After spectacular initial
successes, the revolt was brutally suppressed by Emperor Hadrian.
Betar, west of Jerusalem, was the last Jewish stronghold to be
reduced (135 AD). Bar Kochba, his mentor Rabbi Akiva, and
thousands of their followers were executed; many others sold as
slaves. The revolt signified the virtual end of Jewish presence
in Judea; Jerusalem was rebuilt as a city dedicated to Zeus.
Bar-Rav-Hai (1894-1977) -- Mapai. Lawyer. Born in Russia;
immigrated after release from Soviet prison 1924. Member of the
National Committee of Palestine Jewry. Delegate to various
Zionist Congresses. Honorary Citizen of Haifa. Member of the
Knesset 1949-65; mainly active in juridical and constitutional
matters, including election proceedings.
Bar-Yehuda (Idelson), Israel (1895-1965) -- Mapam. Born
Yekatrinoslav, Russia. Immigrated 1926. Member of Kibbutz Yagur.
Active in Petah Tikva Labor Council; subsequently in Kibbutz
movement. Member of the Knesset 1949-65. Minister of Internal
Affairs (1955-59); Transport (1962-65).
Bashan (Hauran) -- Mountainous, basalt covered region, east of
the Jordan, north of the Yarmuk River. Includes the Golan Heights
and Gebel e-Druze.
Basle Program -- Program of the incipient World Zionist
Organization, formulated and adopted at the First Zionist
Congress held in Basle (1897). It states that "Zionism strives to
create for the Jewish people a home in Palestine secured by
Public Law." It remained unchanged until after the establishment
of Israel, 51 years later.
Beduin -- Nomadic Arab.
Beersheba (Well of the Oath) -- Town in the south of Israel;
capital of the Negev. Named after biblical locality, related to
Abraham and Isaac. Under Ottoman and British rule, small Beduin
market town.
Beer Tuviah -- Moshav (cooperative village) in the coastal
plain. Founded in 1887. Abandoned following an Arab attack in
1929, it was restored in 1930.
Begin, Menahem (1913- ) -- Herut. Born Brest-Litovsk. Studied
law at Warsaw University. In 1939 appointed by Jabotinsky as
Commander of the Betar movement in Poland. In 1940 condemned by
Soviets to eight years hard labor; released following the
Soviet-Polish agreement of 1941. Arrived in Palestine with Polish
forces; after his release at the end of 1943 appointed Commander
of the Irgun (q.v.). In 1944 declared revolt against the British
Mandatory government; official Zionist policy, at the time called
for restraint until after the end of the war except on matters of
illegal immigration. British authorities put a price on his head,
but he was never apprehended. Revolt continued until shortly
before the end of the British Mandate, at times in direct
contradiction with Hagana, which led to confrontation; for a
while in cooperation with Hagana and Lehi. In 1948 present on
board Altalena (q.v.). Established Herut party, based on Irgun.
Member of Knesset, as leader of Herut, subsequently Gahal, and
ultimately Likud, from 1949 until his resignation in 1983.
Minister without portfolio 1967-1970. Prime Minister, and for one
year Minister of Defense, 1977-1983. Signed Peace Treaty with
Egypt 1979.
Beit Jiz and Beit Sussin -- Abandoned Arab villages near Latrun,
on Burma Road (q.v.).
Ben-Aharon (Nissenbaum), Yitzhak (1906- ) -- Mapam. Born
Bucovina, Rumania. Immigrated 1928. Member of Kibbutz Givat
Chaim. Secretary of Tel Aviv Labor Council. Joint Secretary of
Mapai. Joined British Army at beginning of war; captured on Crete
and held by Germans as prisoner of war. Detained by British
authorities June 1946. Member of Knesset 1949-77. Minister of
Transport 1958-62. Secretary General of the Histadrut 1969-1973.
The reunification of the two workers parties (1962) was to a
large extent the result of his initiative. Leader of the Labor
party "dovish" wing. Retired from active political life in 1977;
continues propagating his ideas orally and in writing.
Ben-Eliezer, Arye (1913-1970) -- Herut. Born Vilna.
Immigrated 1920. Joined Betar (Brit Trumpeldor) 1926. Active in
defense of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv during the riots of 1929 and
1936. Emissary of the Irgun in Eastern and Southern Europe
1937-39. During World War II in the U.S., active in the
establishment of the Committee for a Jewish Army; the Emergency
Committee to Save the Jewish People in Europe. Returned to
Palestine 1943; joined Irgun High Command. Instrumental in
appointment of Menahem Begin as Commander. Detained by British in
1944; escaped from Eritrea (1947); granted asylum by French,
together with Yitzhak Shamir. Returned to Israel, June 1948. One
of the founders of Herut. Member of Knesset 1949-70. Deputy
Speaker.
Ben-Gurion, David (1886-1973) -- Born Plonsk (then Russia);
immigrated 1906. In 1912 went to Istanbul to study law. Back in
Palestine, was expelled by Ottoman authorities in 1915 as enemy
(Russian) alien; moved to the U.S. where he promoted idea of
Jewish Army. When U.S. entered the war, joined the American
Battalion of the Jewish Legion, with which he returned to
Palestine. One of the founders of the historical "Leachdut
Haavoda" party (1919) and the Histadrut (1920). Secretary General
of the Histadrut (1920-35). Chairman of the Jewish Agency for
Palestine (1935-48), representing Mapai which had become the
predominant party in 1933. In 1937 supported Partition of
Palestine as the only way towards a peaceful solution of the
Palestine problem. In World War II coined the slogan: "We shall
fight against Hitler as if there were no White Paper [of 1939,
calling for an end to the National Home policy], and we shall
fight against the White Paper as if Hitler did not exist." Was
responsible for the drafting and adoption of the Biltmore program
(q.v.). Once he became convinced that the new British Labour
government (1945) would continue the White Paper policy, he was
active in organization of the struggle in the areas of
immigration (Ha'apala); settlement, and military preparations.
Was the first to foresee a military confrontation with the
regular armies of neighboring countries and to conceive of
practical ways to prepare for the clash. Drafted and promoted
Israel's Declaration of Independence. As Prime Minister and
Minister of Defense (1948-53), responsible for the conduct of the
War of Independence and the negotiations of the Armistice
Agreements (1949); the mass immigration and absorption of the
first years of the state. In 1953 retired to Kibbutz Sde Boker in
the Negev. Recalled from retirement first as Minister of Defense
and then also as Prime Minister, he was responsible for the Sinai
Operation (1956), and its aftermath. Promoted the alliance with
France. Against bitter opposition negotiated the Reparations
Agreement with German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. Resigned in
1963 in favor of Levi Eshkol. In 1964, in the wake of the Lavon
Affair, split from his party to form Rafi, which gained ten seats
in the elections of 1965. When his Rafi colleagues decided to
merge with the Labor party, he stayed outside as the lone member
of the State List. In 1969 that list won four seats. In 1970,
retired from political life at the age of 84. Generally
considered as the single most influential leader in the
establishment of Israel and its early history.
Ben Shalom, Rafi -- Member of Kibbutz Haogen. Emissary for
illegal immigration; Ambassador to Rumania.
Ben-Tov, Mordechai (1900-1985) -- Born Grodzisk, near Warsaw.
Active in Hashomer Hatzair movement. Immigrated 1920. Founding
Member of Kibbutz Mishmar Haemek. Member of Zionist Action
Committee; Kibbutz Artzi and Histadrut Executive. Member of
Knesset 1949-60, Mapam. Minister of Labor and Reconstruction
(1948-49); Development (1955-61). Founder of Al Hamishmar (q.v.).
Ben-Yehuda, Eliezer (1858-1922) -- The "Father of Modern
Hebrew"; principal agent in the renaissance of the Hebrew
language as the living vehicle of communication among Palestinian
Jews, and subsequently in Israel.
Ben-Zvi, Yitzhak (1884-1963) -- Mapai. Born Poltava, Russia.
Immigrated 1907. Among the founders of the Bar Giora and Hashomer
clandestine Jewish self-defense organizations. Studied law in
Istanbul; expelled in 1915, went to the U.S. with Ben-Gurion.
Returned as soldier in Jewish Legion. Active in community
affairs; President of the National Committee (Va'ad Leumi) of
Palestine Jewry from 1931. Member of First and Second Knesset. In
1952 elected second President of Israel, after the death of Chaim
Weizmann; reelected 1957 and 1962. Conducted extensive research
on Oriental Jewish communities. Endeavored to bring about
reconciliation with Samaritans.
Berligne, Eliahu (1866-1955) -- Born Mohilev, Russia.
Immigrated 1907. Industrialist. Delegate to the Representative
Assembly; Member of Provisional Council of State for General
Zionists. Signatory of Declaration of Independence.
Berlin, Rabbi Meir (1880-1949) -- Born Volozin, Russia.
Immigrated from the U.S. 1926. Leader of Mizrachi (Religious
Zionist party); member of Jewish Agency Executive; of Va'ad
Leumi. Active in defense and political affairs. After 1944 partly
incapacitated because of illness.
Bernadotte, Count Folke (1895-1948) -- Swedish diplomat. In May
1948 appointed by the Secretary General of the United Nations as
Chief of the Truce Supervision Organization, and as Mediator for
Palestine. In June 1948 presented first plan, envisaging inter
alia the merger of the Arab parts of Palestine with Transjordan,
under the rule of King Abdullah, and the inclusion of Jerusalem
as well as the Negev in that Arab state, with Western Galilee to
be added to the Jewish state. Soon after signing second plan,
with certain modifications, killed in Jerusalem by a group
identified with Lehi (q.v.).
Bernstein, Peretz (Fritz) (1890-1971) -- Born Meiningen, Germany.
Immigrated from Holland 1936. Leader of General Zionist,
subsequently reconstituted as Liberal party. Member of Jewish
Agency Executive, in charge of Department of Commerce and Trade.
Editor of Haboker. Member of Provisional Council of State; of
Knesset 1949-65. Minister of Commerce and Industry 1948-49;
1953-55.
Betar -- Acronym for Brit Josef Trumpeldor. Zionist youth
movement, founded 1923, affiliated with Revisionist party. Its
mentor was Ze'ev Jabotinsky; its program called for immediate
Jewish statehood; military preparedness; "Hadar," a code of honor
and personal behavior. Its anti-socialist stance led to clashes
with Histadrut affiliated youth movements. A major recruiting
ground for the Irgun, it was outlawed by the British authorities
in Palestine.
Beth Guvrin (Jovrin) -- Kibbutz in the Judean foothills, 14 km.
from Kiryat Gat. Named after an ancient Jewish and more recent
Arab settlement on the same site.
Beth Hanoun -- Arab town in the north of the Gaza Strip.
Bethlehem -- Arab town in the Judean mountains, 7 km. south of
Jerusalem. Site of the biblical town by the same name, birthplace
of King David. Sacred for Christianity as site of Nativity of
Jesus.
Bevin, Ernest (1881-1951) -- British Labour leader. Foreign
Secretary 1945-51; played a central role in formulation and
implementation of British policy on Palestine. Attaching major
importance to British relations with Arab Middle East, many of
his decisions and pronouncements have been perceived as
anti-Zionist, at times even as anti-Semitic.
Bialik, Chaim Nachman (1873-1934) -- Born Brody, Ukraine.
Immigrated from Germany 1924. Poet, author, editor and publisher.
Principal poet of the Jewish renaissance.
Biltmore Program -- Resolution adopted by an extraordinary
Zionist Conference, which took place at the Biltmore Hotel in New
York in May 1942, after the real dimensions of the Holocaust
became known. It urged that "Palestine be established as a Jewish
Commonwealth integrated in the structure of the new democratic
world (after World War II)." This was the first time that the
Zionist organization officially demanded a Jewish state, by
implication accepting the Partition of Palestine.
Bilu'im -- Movement of Palestine pioneers who spearheaded
the First Aliya (1882). Acronym of "Beth Ya'akov L'khu V'nelkha"
(House of Jacob, come ye and let us go -- Isaiah, ch. 2). Founded
in Kharkov as a reaction to the pogroms of that year.
Bir-Hama; Bir Hasneh -- Egyptian strongholds in Eastern Sinai.
Birobidzhan -- Jewish autonomous region in Eastern Siberia.
Established 1928 with the idea of providing a territorial
solution to the Jewish problem in Russia, in direct competition
with Zionism. In spite of considerable propaganda and pressure,
its Jewish population at its peak (1934) numbered 20,000, many of
whom left. It never became a cultural center and is generally
considered as a failure, even by Soviet authorities.
Blood Libel -- Accusation levelled against Jews, claiming
that they used Christian blood for their Passover ritual and
killed Christian children for that purpose. First enunciated at
Norwich, England, in 1144, it was repeated over and over again in
spite of repeated condemnation and disauthorization by the
highest secular and ecclesiastical authorities.
Boger, Dr. Haim (1876-1963) -- Born in Crimea; immigrated 1906.
Co-founder and for many years Headmaster of the Herzlia
Gymnasium, Tel Aviv, first Hebrew language secondary school.
Memeber of the Second Knesset for the General Zionists.
Borochov, Ber (1881-1917) -- Founder and theoretician of the
Poale Zion movement, synthesizing Socialism and Zionism.
Brandeis, Louis Dembitz (1856-1941) -- Jurist; Zionist leader.
Born in Louisville, Ky. First Jewish Justice of the Supreme Court
of the U.S. Attracted to Zionism fairly late in life, he became
the uncontested leader of American Zionism. In 1917, prior to the
Balfour Declaration, negotiated with American, British and French
governments. Was offered, but declined, the presidency of the
World Zionist Organization (1920). A split with European Zionists
headed by Weizmann brought about his withdrawal from active
leadership. He continued his Zionist activities, particularly
with the practical work of economic development. His insistence
on national funds being devoted to the development of
Infrastructure, with private initiative and capital responsible
for micro-economic construction, gained greater acceptance in
later years.
Brest-Litovsk (Brisk) -- Town near the Polish-Russian border.
Center of Jewish learning. Site of the German-Russian Peace
Treaty at the end of World War I.
Bukharin, Nikolai Ivanovich (1888-1938) -- Russian
Communist leader, chief theoretician after Lenin's death. Purged
and executed 1938.
Bunche, Dr. Ralph Johnson (1904-1971) -- American diplomat;
senior United Nations official. In 1947 served as Secretary of
the UN Special Committee on Palestine. In 1948 Special UN
Representative; after assassination of Count Bernadotte (q.v.),
appointed Acting Mediator for Palestine. Active in the
negotiation of Armistice Agreements between Israel and its
neighbors (1949), for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
(1950).
Burg, Dr. Shlomo Yoseph (1909- ) -- Born in Dresden, Germany;
immigrated 1939. Leader of Hapoel Hamizrachi; Mizrachi; National
Religious Party (Mafdal). Member of Knesset 1949-88. Deputy
Speaker in First Knesset. From Second Knesset (1951) until 1988
held cabinet posts, with brief intervals, holding the portfolios
of Health; Post and Communications; Welfare; Interior; Religious
Affairs.
Burla, Yehuda (1886-1969) -- Born in Jerusalem. Teacher, writer,
editor. Active in the promotion of Sephardic literature. Director
of the Histadrut Department for Arab Affairs.
Cadogan, Sir Alexander -- British civil servant; Permanent
Undersecretary of the Foreign Office 1938-1945; first Permanent
Representative to the United Nations.
Cahana (Kahana), Rabbi Kalman (1910- ) -- Born in Brody,
Poland; immigrated 1938. Leader of Poalei Agudat Israel (q.v.).
Member of Kibbutz Hafetz Haim. Member of Provisional Council of
State, and of the Knesset 1949-81. Deputy Minister of Education
and Culture 1961-66.
Chamberlain, Sir Neville (1869-1940) -- British political
leader; Conservative. Prime Minister 1937-40. Issued White Paper
on Palestine (May 1939) considered as betrayal of British
obligations towards the Jewish National Home. Signed Munich Pact
with Hitler, believing that it would bring "Peace in our time."
Circassians -- Tribe from the Caucasus whose territory
was handed over to the Russians by the Ottoman Turks in 1829.
After several revolts lasting until 1859, many, particularly from
among the Muslim Circassians, fled to the other parts of the
Ottoman Empire. Renowned for their martial and equestrian
prowess. In Israel there are several hundred in two villages in
Galilee.
Clayton, Brigadier Sir Illtyd Nicholl -- British officer
attached to the Middle East Office in Cairo during and after
World War II. Active in the formation of Arab League (q.v.) and
formulation of postwar British policy in the Middle East.
Coastal Plain -- Undulating, often sandy, strip of territory
running north to south parallel to the Mediterranean Coast of
Israel. About 100 km. in length, its width varies from 14 to 30
km. Includes major population centers of the country.
Cohen, Idov (1909- ) -- Born in Rumania; immigrated 1940.
Leader of Haoved Hazioni (q.v.); subsequently Progressive party,
and finally Liberal party. Member of Knesset (Progressive Party)
1949-63.
Cohen (Cahan), Yaakov (1881-1960) -- Hebrew writer; linguist.
Born in Sluzk, Russia; immigrated 1934. Active in Revisionist,
subsequently Jewish State party. President of PEN Club.
Cohen (Cagan), Rachel (1888-1982) -- Born in Odessa;
immigrated 1919. President of WIZO-Women's International Zionist
Organization. Member of the First Knesset on behalf of WIZO; of
the Fifth on behalf of Liberal party. Active in social welfare
issues and women's rights.
Cohen-Maguri, Chaim (1912- ) -- Herut. Member of the First to
the Sixth Knessets.
Cominform -- Communist Information Bureau; established 1947 by
Communust parties of Soviet Union, Eastern Europe and Italy.
Dominated by Russia; dissolved itself in 1956 to placate Marshal
Tito of Yugoslavia who had been expelled.
Conciliation Commission -- Established by UN General Assembly in
1948 to find agreed solution for Palestine question; consisted of
representatives of France, Turkey and the U.S. Convened Lausanne
Conference (1949) which proved futile. Dormant For many years.
Cook, Hillel (Peter Bergson) (1915- ) -- Born in Lithuania;
immigrated 1924. Member of Irgun (1931) and its Command (1937).
Irgun Representative in U.S. 1940-48. Active in promotion of
Committee for a Jewish Army (1941-43); Emergency Committee to
Rescue the Jewish People in Europe (1943-45). Member of First
Knesset (Herut); retired from political life as a result of
difference of opinion with the leader of the party.
Copeland, Sir Reginald (1884-1952) -- Professor of British
Colonial History. Member of the Royal Commission for Palestine
(Peel Commission) 1936-37; formulated the idea of Partition of
Palestine which became the majority recommendation of that
Commission.
Council of State (Provisional Council of State) (14 May 1948-25
January 1949) -- Provisional representative and legislative body
of Israel; replaced by the First Knesset, whose election it
initiated and supervised.
Council of Four Lands -- Regional Jewish self-governing
authority, established towards the end of the sixteenth century,
comprising four Polish provinces. Based in Lublin.
Creech-Jones, Sir Arthur (1891-1964) -- British Labour leader
and cabinet member. Colonial Secretary of State, subsequently
Secretary 1945-1950.
CSSR -- Czechoslovak Soviet Socialist Republic.
Cunningham, General Sir Alan Gordon (b.1887) -- Last British
High Commissioner for Palestine 1945-1948.
Dahab -- Oasis and Beduin fishing village in Sinai, 150 km.
south of Eilat.
Dan -- Kibbutz in Eastern Galilee, named after ancient
nearby biblical town.
Dardara -- Kibbutz in the east of the Hula Valley at the foot
of the Golan Heights.
Davar -- Histadrut daily newspaper, founded by Berl Katznelson in
1925.
Dayan, Moshe (1915-1981) -- Born in Kibbutz Degania. Military and
political leader. Mapai and Rafi. Chief of the General Staff
(1953-58); conducted Sinai Campaign. Member of Knesset 1959-81.
Minister of Agriculture 1959-64. Appointed Minister of Defense on
the eve of the Six Day War (1967); replaced in the aftermath of
the Yom Kipur War (1974). Minister of Foreign Affairs 1977-79;
played central role in the negotiation of the Camp David Accords
and the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty.
Dayan, Shmuel (1881-1968) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1908.
Active in Moshav movemement. Member of Knesset.
Dayanim -- Judges of Jewish religious courts.
Day of Atonement -- See Yom Kippur.
DDR -- German Democratic Republic.
Defense (Emergency) Regulations -- Regulations issued by
the Executive without prior Parliamentary authorization, on the
basis of emergency legislation carried over from the Brirish
Mandatory government.
Degania -- Kibbutz at the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee, 10
km. south of TIberias. First kibbutz in the country; scene of
major battle with invading Syrian Army, 1948.
De Haan, Jacob Israel (1881-1924) -- Born in Holland;
immigrated 1919. At first a Dutch Socialist; then a Zionist;
ultimately a member of the ultra-Orthodox community of Jerusalem
and relentless opponent of the Zionist movement. When he carried
the struggle against Zionism outside of Palestine, he was killed
by a group linked to the Hagana.
Dimitrov, George M. (1882-1949) -- Bulgarian Communist leader.
Secretary General of the Cominform (q.v.).
Dinur (Dinaburg), Professor Ben Zion (1884-1973) -- Born in the
Ukraine; immigrated 1921. Teacher, authority on Jewish history.
As Minister of Education (1951-55), presented Obligatory
Education Law envisaging inter alia the abolition of the
different "streams" (ideological tendencies). Introduced the law
establishing the Holocaust Memorial Authority (Yad Vashem), which
he headed 1953-59.
Deir Yassin -- Former Arab village on the western outskirts of
Jerusalem. Captured by Irgun and Lehi units in April 1948; five
of the attackers lost their lives in the operation, against about
120 Arabs, many of them women and children. The "massacre" was
immediately condemned by the Jewish Agency. Presented by Arab
spokesmen as typical of Jewish tactics (which it was not), it
spurred the Arab exodus from other locations in Palestine.
Doar Ivri -- Improvised motto on postage stamps, used in April
and May 1948, after the breakdown of Mandatory Postal Services,
and before those of the newly-established state were properly
organized.
Dobkin, Elyahu (1898-1976) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1932.
Mapai. Member of Jewish Agency Executive; Head of the Youth and
Hechalutz (Pioneer) Department.
Druse -- National-religious Arabic-speaking minority,
occupying mainly mountainous areas in Lebanon, Syria and Israel.
Split from Islam in eleventh century, the principles of their
religion are made known only to a select group of elders. In
Israel they live in a number of villages and towns in Galilee and
the Carmel, to which some villages in the Golan Heights have been
added in 1967. They number about 1 percent of the total
population. Close relations with Jews have been established over
the years. In 1948, after a brief clash in which Druse troops
from Syria sided with Arabs, non-aggression between Jews and
Druse, subsequently cooperation, were agreed upon. Since 1957 the
Druse community voluntarily adopted obligatory military service
for its young men. Many Druse military and police personnel have
distinguished themselves in the line of duty.
Dubnow, Simon (1860-1941) -- Born near Moghilev, Russia; shot by
German soldiers in Riga, Latvia. Historian; theorist of Jewish
autonomism or Galut nationalism; Founder of Folkspartei (People's
party). In later years drew closer to Zionism.
Duvdevani, Yechiel (1896-1988) -- Kibbutz Meuhad activist. Member
of First Knesset for Mapai.
Dunam -- Land measurement unit equivalent to 1000 sq. meters.
Dushinsky, Rabbi Josef Zvi (1868-1948) -- Born in Hungary;
died in Jerusalem. Immigrated 1933, when appointed Chief Rabbi of
Orthodox Jerusalem. Close to the extreme anti-Zionist faction of
that community (Neturei Karta, the Guardians of the Walls), he
nevertheless approved of the rabbinical decree issued during the
siege of Jerusalem permitting defense preparations on the
Sabbath.
Eban, Abba (Aubrey) (1915- ) -- Diplomat; leader of Mapai,
subsequently Labor party; writer and lecturer. Born in South
Africa. From 1946 member of Jewish Agency Political Department;
Permanent Representative to the UN 1948-59; Ambassador to
Washington 1959-60. Member of Knesset 1961-87. Minister of
Education and Culture 1960-63; Deputy Prime Minister 1963-66;
Foreign Minister 1966-74. Chairman of Foreign Affairs and Defense
Committe of the Knesset 1984-87. One of the best known Israel
political leaders worldwide, his books and articles have been
translated into many languages.
Economic Union -- Arrangement envisaged under the Partition
Resolution of 29 November 1947 by which the three successor
states in Mandatory Palestine -- the Arab state, the Jewish
state, and the international enclave -- would continue with one
currency and within a customs and tariff union.
Edom -- Mountainous country, also called Mt. Se'ir, given to Esau
and his descendants. Extended from Dead Sea to the Gulf of
Aqaba.
Ehrenburg, Ilya (1891-1967) -- Russian Jewish novelist and
journalist. Extreme opponent of Zionism. Active in the Jewish
Anti-Fascist Committee in World War II.
Eilat -- Port at the head of the synonymous Gulf. Mentioned in
the Bible under different names, including Etzion Gever, where
King Solomon equipped and dispatched his fleet. Part of the
Jewish state under Partition, it was occupied by the IDF in March
1949.
Ein Gedi -- Kibbutz near an oasis on the western shore of the
Dead Sea, 17 km. north of Massada.
Ein Gev -- Kibbutz on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee,
10 km. northeast of Zemach junction. Site of heavy fighting
against Syrian invaders in 1948 when it constituted the only
Jewish outpost to the east of the Sea.
Ein Harod -- Two kibbutzim by the same name, close to each other,
in the Valley of Esdaelon near the Afula-Baisan Road.
Ein Kerem -- Quarter in the southwest of Jerusalem. Formerly an
Arab village. Identified with biblical Bet Hakerem.
El-Arish -- Mediterranean coastal town in Sinai. Center of
local administration. At the beginning of the twentieth century
its region was considered suitable for Jewish settlement by some
British officials. Thorough investigations and lengthy
negotiations had negative results. In 1949 IDF troops reached its
outskirts in the course of Operation Horev designed to dislodge
the Egyptians from Palestine. Captured by the IDF in 1956 and
again in 1967.
El-Gafgafa (Bir) -- Road junction and communications center in
the center of the Sinai Peninsula.
El-Hamah -- Ancient baths in the Yarmuk riverbed in the south
of the Golan Heights, 10 km. southeast of Zemach. Demilitarized
under Israel-Syrian Armistice Agreement 1949.
Eliash, Dr. Mordecai (1892-1950) -- Born in the Ukraine;
immigrated 1919. Lawyer and diplomat. First Israel Minister to
the Court of St. James, 1949.
Eliashar, Elyahu (1899-1981) -- Born in Jerusalem. First
President of the Sephardic Community Council in Jerusalem. Member
of First and Second Knesset for Sephardic List.
Es-Salt -- Town in Transjordan; regional center, near Hijaz
Railway.
Emes Publishing House -- Official Yiddish language
publishing house in the Soviet Union.
Erem, Moshe (1896-1978) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1924.
Leader of left wing Poalei Zion. Member of Knesset for Mapam.
Eritrea -- Former British colonial territory in East Africa where
camps for Palestinian Jewish detainees were established in the
1940s.
Etrog -- Citrus fruit used for liturgical purposes during
the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles).
Etzion Bloc -- Group of four Jewish settlements in the
Hebron mountains, 20 km. south of Jerusalem. Captured by the Arab
Legion following prolonged battle on 14 May 1948.
Even Yehuda -- Village in the Sharon Valley, 8 km. southeast of
Netanya.
Faisal, Ibn Abd el-Aziz (1905-1975) -- King of Saudi Arabia
1964-1975.
Faluja Pocket -- Enclave near the Faluja road junction in
the Judean foothills in which an Egyptian brigade was besieged
from October 1948 until its release under the Armistice
Agreement. Gamal Abd el-Nasser served as operations officer of
the Brigade.
Farouk, King (1920-1965) -- King of Egypt 1936-52, when ousted by
Free Officers.
FDR -- Federal Republic of Germany.
Fedayeen (Fedayun) -- Moslem commando soldiers, literally:
suicide squads. In the 1950s, until the Sinai Campaign,
Palestinian guerillas and terrorists, were trained and directed
against Israel by Egyptian Intelligence, primarily from the Gaza
Strip.
Feinstein, Meir (1927-1947) -- Member of Irgun; wounded and
captured in the course of an operation against the Jerusalem
railway station. Condemned to die, committed suicide together
with Moshe Barazani (q.v.).
Fellaheen -- (Arabic) Farmers.
Fishman (Maimon), Rabbi Judah-Leib Hacohen (1876-1962) -- Born in
Bessarabia; immigrated 1913. Leader of Mizrachi. Member of Jewish
Agency Executive from 1935. Minister of Religious Affairs in
Provisional Government and several subsequent governments until
1961. A political activist, served on several occasions as
mediator between Hagana, Irgun and Lehi.
Flavius, Josephus (37-95?) -- Jewish historian and soldier;
chronicler of the Jewish revolt against the Romans and the
destruction of the Second Temple 71 AD.
Frank, Yaacov Israel (1925- ) -- Member of Eighth Knesset.
Friedmann-Yellin, Nathan (1913-1978) -- Born in Russia;
immigrated during World War II. Engineer. Member of Lehi Command;
condemned to imprisonment after the killing of Bernadotte. Member
of First Knesset heading the list of Fighters for the Freedom of
Israel. In 1958 initiated short-lived Semitic Movement for
Arab-Jewish reconciliation; henceforth advocated dovish
positions.
Garin (literally nucleus) -- Group organized for the purpose
of establishing a new agricultural settlement.
Gahal (Acronym: Gius Hutz Laaretz; recruiting from abroad) -- IDF
soldiers in the War of Independence who immigrated mainly from DP
camps in Europe and detention camps on Cyprus during the war.
Galilee, Sea of -- Part of the Jordan Rift Valley, bordering
on Lower Galilee. Lowest freshwater lake on earth.
Galili, Israel (1910-1986) -- Born in the Ukraine; immigrated
1914. Leader of Achdut Ha'Avoda; subsequently Mapam; Labor
party. Chief of the Hagana Command 1946-48. Deputy Minister of
Defense 1948. Member of Knesset 1949-77. Minister without
portfolio 1966; 1974-77.
Gaon of Vilna (Gaon Rabbi Elijah) (1720-1803) -- Jewish scholar;
rationalist. Opponent of Hassidism, whose perceived superstitions
he condemned. At the height of the controversy (1781), he
excommunicated the Hassidim and forbade intermarriage with them.
Gaza Strip -- Southernmost section of the coastal plain of
former Palestine, held by Egyptians at the end of the War of
Independence. Forty km. long; varies in width from 6 to 13 km.
Gemara (Talmud) -- Formulation and codification of the oral
exegesis of Jewish law, finalized in the sixth century in
Jerusalem and Babylon.
General Zionists -- During the first decades of the Zionist
Organization, a vague term applied to all those who did not have
a specific (such as socialist or religious) agenda in addition to
the Basle Program. Subsequently organized as a separate group,
including the majority of diaspora members of the Organization,
they were still relatively weak in Palestine where they came to
represent middle class interests. In the 1940s they split into
two groups -- A and B -- over the twin issues of more or less
activist, combative attitudes towards the Mandatory government
and its policies, on the one hand, and the Socialist-dominated
Histadrut, on the other. In the elections for the First Knesset,
group A constituted the Progressive party; group B, the General
Zionists. United for a number of years after 1961 under the name
of Liberal party, they split again when one part, basically
former group B, joined Herut in 1965, in the formation of a joint
list (Gahal). The former Progressives continued as Independent
Liberals.
Geneva Convention -- In fact, conventions: a series of
international conventions signed in Geneva designed to alleviate
human suffering, particularly at the time and in the aftermath of
war. The first convention, signed in 1864, initiated the Red
Cross.
Genihowski, Eliahu Moshe (1903-1971) -- Born in Poland;
immigrated 1932. Hapoel Hamizrachi. Member of First and Second
Knesset.
Gerar -- Ancient settlement in the southwest of Israel near
the synonymous Valley.
Gesher -- Kibbutz in the Jordan Valley, 10 km. south of Zemach,
near the confluence of the Jordan and Yarmuk Rivers. Site of
heavy fighting against the invading Iraqi Army in 1948.
Gil, (Lifshitz) Yaakov (1908- ) -- Born in Tiberias. Military
chaplain, Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Brigade Group during World
War II. Member of First Knesset for General Zionists.
Gilboa -- Mountain range between the Esdraelon and
Beisan Valleys, some 18 km. long and 9 km. wide.
Gilead -- Mountainous region to the east of the Jordan River,
some 105 km. in length, from the Yarmuk River to the Heshbon
River, north of the Dead Sea.
Glubb (Pasha), Sir John Bagot (1897- ) -- British officer;
Deputy Commander of the Arab Legion 1930-38; Commander-in-chief
1938-56.
Goebbels, Josef (1897-1945) -- German National Socialist
Propaganda Minister 1933-45.
Gold, (Rabbi) Wolf (1889-1956) -- Born in Russia; immigrated
1924. Mizrachi Leader. Co-founder, American Union of Orthodox
Rabbis; Member of Provisional Council of State.
Goldmann, Nahum (1894-1982) -- Born in Lithuania; immigrated
1964. Co-founder of World Jewish Congress; Jewish Agency
Representative in Geneva; President of the World Zionist
Organization. Active in soliciting support for Partition in 1947;
instrumental in negotiation of German Reparations. Later
extremely critical of Israel and its policies, advocating mutual
Palestinian-Israel recognition.
Goldrat, Avraham (1911-1980) -- Born in Poland; immigrated 1933.
Young Agudat Israel activist in Poland; member of First Knesset
on behalf of Religious Front.
Goshen -- Fertile part of Egypt, probably in the northeast of
the Delta, occupied by Israelites according to Bible.
Gottwald, Klement (1896-1953) -- President of Czechoslovakia
1948-1953.
Govrin, Akiba (1902-1980) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1922.
Mapai; Labor party. Member of Knesset 1949-69; Minister without
portfolio 1963-64; Tourism 1964-66.
Grabowsky, Meir -- See Argov.
Granowsky (Granott), Dr. Abraham (1890-1962) -- Born in Russia;
immigrated 1922. Active in Jewish National Fund (KKL); Chairman
of the Board 1945; President 1960. Member of the First Knesset on
behalf of the Progressive party.
Greenberg, Uri Zvi (1895-1981) -- Born in Galicia; immigrated
1924. Hebrew and Yiddish poet. Poet of the pioneers at one time,
he later developed a mystical nationalist philosophy. Member of
First Knesset for Herut.
Gromyko, Andrei Andreyevich (1909-1988) -- Russian diplomat;
Permanent Delegate to the UN 1946-48; Deputy Foreign Minister
1949-52; Foreign Minister 1957.
Grotewohl, Otto (1894-1964) -- Communist party leader and Prime
Minister of the DDR (1949-64).
Gruenbaum, Yitzhak (b.1879) -- Zionist Leader in Poland; Member
of the Siem 1919-1930, one of the organizers of the Minorities
Bloc; immigrated 1933. Member of the Zionist Executive (General
Zionists); Minister of Internal Affairs in Provisional Government
(1948-49).
Guildhall Speech -- Speech delivered by Sir Anthony Eden
(later Lord Avon), British Foreign Secretary, on 9 November 1955,
calling for a compromise adjustment between Israel's borders at
the time and those assigned it under the UN Partition Resolution.
Gulf of Solomon -- See Eilat.
Ha'aretz -- Israeli daily newspaper, founded as Hadashot Haaretz
in 1919. For many years the only morning paper not affiliated
with any political party.
Habibi, Emil (1922- ) -- Palestinian, later Israel Communist
Arab leader. Member of the Knesset representing Maki and Rakah.
Hacohen, David (1897-1984) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1907.
Mapai, Labor. First Ambassador to Burma. Member of the Knesset;
Chairman of Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
Hadar Hacarmel -- Commercial center of Haifa, on the western
slope of Mount Carmel halfway between the lower city and the
peak.
Hadassah -- Women's Zionist Organization of America. Founded by
Henrietta Szold, it first dispatched medical personnel to
Palestine in 1913. Directs a network of humanitarian institutions
in Israel, the most important being the Hadassah Hospital Medical
Center in Jerusalem.
Hadera -- Town in the north of the Sharon; originally an
agricultural settlement founded in 1890.
HaDor -- Hebrew daily newspaper, owned by Mapai.
Hagana -- Clandestine Jewish self-defense organization in
Palestine, founded at the initiative of the Histadrut in 1920 for
the purpose of protecting Jewish life and property against
attacks by Arabs as a result of the inadequacy of protection
provided by British authorities. Following the establishment of
the state it was converted into the IDF.
Hager, (Rabbi) Menachem Mendel (1889-1954) -- Born in Bukovina;
immigrated 1943. Mizrachi member of Provisional Council of State.
Haifa -- Port and industrial center in the north of Israel.
Haj (Mohamed) Amin el-Husseini (1895-1974) -- Grand Mufti of
Jerusalem; radical Palestinian and Muslim leader. Active in
anti-Jewish riots of 1920-21; 1929; 1936-39. During World War II
recruited Muslims for Nazi Germany, and declared a war criminal.
Opposed Partition in 1947 and headed violent Palestinian
resistance to its implementation in its early phase.
Hakim, (Bishop) George (1908- ) -- Born in Egypt. Head of the
Greek Catholic community in the north of Israel.
Halakhah -- Jewish religious law.
Hamashbir (or Hamashbir Hamerkazi) -- Central cooperative
sales organization for productive enterprises linked with or
owned by the Histadrut.
Hamizrachi -- Religious Zionist party established in 1902 with
the aim of securing "Eretz Israel for the people of Israel
according to the Torah of Israel." It envisages, in the ultimate
stage, a Jewish state governed according to Halakhah, but
considers the present day secular state as a precursor of that
state. Participated in most government coalitions from 1956 as a
part of the National Religious Party.
Hammarskjold, Dag (1905-1961) -- Swedish economist and diplomat.
Secretary General of the United Nations from 1953 until his death
in an accident. Active in connection with the Suez Crisis in
1956, and instrumental in establishment of the UN Emergency Force
(UNEF).
Ha'Oved Hatzioni -- Non-socialist workers party, merged with the
Progressive party in 1948.
Hapoel Hamizrachi -- Religious labor organization, established in
1921. Cooperated with Mizrachi on political matters; merged with
it in 1956 to form the National Religious Party.
Harari, Yizhar (1908-1978) -- Born in Jaffa. Progressive;
subsequently Independent Liberal; ultimately Labor party. Lawyer.
Member of the First to the Eighth Knesset. Active in Foreign
Affairs, and Law and Constitution Committees. In 1951 proposed
the formula that Israel would have a written constittution
developed gradually, which has been accepted since.
Harzfeld, Abraham (b.1888) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1914.
Mapai, Labor. Active in land purchases and settlement. Member of
Knesset 1949-65.
Hashemite -- Arab clan, from which sprang the Prophet Mohamed,
according to tradition. The Sharif of Mecca was one of its
descendants.
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan -- Since 1949, the territory on
both banks of the Jordan River controlled by the Hashemite King
Abdullah (until 1951); by Tallal (1951-52); by Hussain (1952- ).
Hashomer Hatzair -- Jewish youth movement formed in 1913 when
various local Zionist groups in Galicia (then under
Austro-Hungarian rule, and Poland (then under Tsarist Russian
rule) combined. Subsequently spread to other diaspora countries,
and established a series of kibbutzim in Palestine, federated in
Kibbutz Artzi. During World War II members of the organization
stood out in partisan and resistance units. In 1946 Hashomer
Hatzair formally became a political party in Palestine, and in
1948 it participated in the formation of Mapam.
Hasmoneans (Maccabees) -- Jewish family of the second and
first century BCE which led the opposition to Syrian dominance
and Hellenizing tendencies and in the restoration of Jewish
political and religious life.
Hassan Beck -- Quarter of Jaffa, named after the
synonymous mosque.
Hassan Hanifas, Salah (1918- ) -- Born in Shefaram. Druse
leader. Member of Second and Third Knessets, heading an Arab list
linked with Mapai.
Hatikva (The Hope) -- Anthem of the Zionist movement and
national anthem of the State of Israel. Written by Naftali Herz
Imber about 1880. The melody is based on a Moldavian folk melody.
Hatzohar -- See Revisionists.
Hayarkon Street -- North-south artery parallel to the shore of
Tel Aviv. In 1948 seat of the Hagana High Command; central
committee of Mapai, subsequently Labor party.
Hazan, Yaakov (b.1899) -- Born in Russia. Hashomer Hatzair,
Mapam Leader. Knesset Member 1949- . Foreign Affairs and
Defense Committee.
Hebron -- Ancient town in Judean mountains, 36 km. south of
Jerusalem. Believed to have been the seat of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. Its Jewish community was massacred or expelled in 1929.
Captured by IDF in 1967, a new community was subsequently
established in nearby Kiryat Arba.
Heletz -- Moshav in the Lahish region; nearby is the first
modest oilfield discovered in Palestine.
Hermon (Mount) -- Highest mountain range in the Levant, on the
borderline between Israel and Syria. Scene of heavy fighting in
the course of the Yom Kippur War. Its peak, in Syria, reaches
2814 m.
Herut (party or movement) -- Israel political party founded by
the Irgun in 1948. Advocates the unification of Eretz Israel
within its historic boundaries and the promulgation of a written
constitution. In 1965 entered a parliamentary and electoral bloc
with the Liberal party (Gahal); in 1977 Gahal joined with two
more groups -- the Free Center and the Movement for Greater
(literally: the complete) Israel -- to form the Likud bloc, which
won a plurality in the elections of 1977. Its undisputed leader
from 1948 until his retirement in 1983 was Menahem Begin.
Herzl, Benjamin Zeev (Theodor) (1860-1904) -- Born in Budapest;
died in Vienna. Prophet of the Jewish state; father of political
Zionism and founder of the World Zionist Organization. Originated
the Basle Program. In accordance with his will, his remains were
transferred to Jerusalem after the establishment of the state in
1949.
Hibat Zion (Hovevei Zion) -- Movement established in 1882 in
reaction to pogroms in Russia, for the purpose of encouraging
Jewish settlement in Palestine and achieving a Jewish national
revival there.
Histadrut -- General Federation of Labor, founded 1920 in Haifa.
In 1985 close to 1.5 million members. The Histadrut is at one and
the same time a trade union, a mutual aid society, a productive
economic system and a center of cultural and sports activities.
The Histadrut Conference, its supreme institution, is elected
once every four years by proportional representation. Mapai, and
subsequently the Labor party or Alignment, have been in control
throughout, and all Secretaries General have come from its ranks.
Horeb (Operation) (22 December 1948-7 January 1949) -- One of
the last operations undertaken by the IDF in the course of
Israel's War of Independence, designed to expel the remaining
Egyptian invading forces from Israeli territory.
Horthy, Nicholas (1886-1957) -- Hungarian admiral and statesman.
Headed counterrevolutionary forces during Bela Kun regime; regent
of Hungary 1920-44; forced by Germans to resign.
Hosni Zaim (1889-1949) -- Born in Aleppo; Kurdish descent.
Syrian Army officer; appointed Chief of Staff May 1948. Undertook
first military coup in Syria in March 1949; in June of the same
year elected President; in August 1949 toppled in another coup,
condemned to death and executed.
Hoter-Yishai, Aharon (1905- ) -- Born in Russia; immigrated
1913. Lawyer. Active in Hagana. Served in Jewish Brigade during
World War II. IDF Advocate General.
Abba Houshi (1898-1969) -- Mapai-Labor leader. Born in Eastern
Galicia; immigrated to Palestine 1920. Secretary of Haifa Labor
Council 1931-51; Mayor of Haifa 1951-69. Member of Arab
Department of Histadrut; maintained close relations with Arab and
Druse population of Haifa and the North.
Husan -- Arab village in the Judean mountains, 7 km. west of
Bethlehem.
Hussain, Ibn Tallal (1935- ) -- King of Jordan since 1952.
Husseinis -- Followers of Haj Amin el Husseini, Mufti of
Jerusalem (q.v.).
Hyat, Victor -- Christian Arab businessman and leader in Haifa.
In 1948 member of the Arab Emergency Committee, attempted to
prevent the exodus from the city.
Hyrcanus (Jochanan) -- Son of Simeon the Hasmonean; ruled from
135-105 BCE.
Ibn-Saud, Abdel-Aziz (1880-1953) -- Chief of the Wahabi Sect;
captured Mecca and Medina 1924, Jedda and the rest of the Hejaz
1925; proclaimed King 1926. In 1932 changed name of his Kingdom
to Saudi Arabia.
Ichilov, Ezra (1907-1961) -- Born in Petah Tikva. Leader of
Farmers Union; General Zionists. Member of Second to Fourth
Knessets.
Idelson, Beba (1895-1975) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1926.
Active in Women Workers' Organization; its Secretary General
from 1930. Member of the Provisional Council of State and of the
Knesset on behalf of Achdut Ha'Avoda, later Mapai. Deputy
Speaker.
IDF -- Israel Defense Forces.
IL -- Israel Pound.
Ilyushin -- Soviet-made military airplane, fighter bomber.
Immigration Ordinance (1941) -- British Mandatory decree
drastically limiting Jewish immigration into Palestine.
Iraq el-Manshya -- Arab village, military outpost in the South;
towards the end of the War of Independence part of the Faluja
Pocket.
Iraq Suedan -- British police fortress, of the type designed by
Teggart and named after him, in the southern coastal plain.
Fulfilled a central role in the battle for the besieged Negev in
1948; attacked seven times by IDF before its capture from
Egyptians.
Irgun Zvai Leumi (National Military Organization) --
Clandestine military organization founded in Jerusalem in 1931
following a disagreement within the Hagana. From 1936 linked
politically with the Revisionist movement. Dissolved upon the
establishment of the IDF in May 1948, it continued its existence
in Jerusalem until September. In June 1948 its last commander,
Menahem Begin, established the Herut movement adopting the IZL's
emblem.
Isaac -- Son of Abraham. Biblical figure; forefather of the Jews.
Isaiah -- Son of Amoz. One of foremost prophets. Lived in Judea
at the time of the First Temple.
Ismailya -- Town in Egypt; halfway station along the Suez Canal
and administrative center of the region. Named after the Khedive
Ismail, during whose reign the Canal was inaugurated.
Iton Rasmi -- Official Gazette of British Mandate. Renamed
Reshumot in Israel.
IZL -- See Irgun Zvai Leumi.
Jabotinsky, Vladimir (Ze'ev Yona) (1880-1940) -- Born in Odessa,
Russia. Political leader; writer; journalist. Immigrated as a
soldier in the Jewish Legion towards the end of World War I;
jailed in 1920 by British authorities. Released in 1921, he
joined the Zionist Executive in London. Died in U.S. in 1940.
Founder of Betar movement; of New Zionist Organization (Zohar,
the Revisionists). Considered ideologue and precursor of Herut.
Jacob -- Son of Isaac. Biblical figure; forefather of the Jews.
Jaffa -- Ancient port on the Mediterranean Coast, south of Tel
Aviv. Part of the municipal area of Tel Aviv.
Jaljulya -- Arab village in the Sharon Valley, 4 km. east of
Kfar Saba.
Jarjoura, Amin (b.1894) -- Member of Knesset.
Jarrah (Sheikh) -- Arab quarter in the northeastern part of
Jerusalem, astride the road to Mount Scopus. Scene of heavy
fighting in 1948 and of the liquidation of a convoy of Jewish
medical personnel in April 1948.
Jebel Libneh -- Mountain in the northern part of the Sinai
peninsula; site of battles in 1956 and 1967.
Jenin -- Arab town on the border of Samaria and the valley of
Esdraelon.
Jericho -- Ancient city in Palestine north of the Dead Sea.
Jerusalem -- City in the Judean mountains, selected by King
David as capital of his united kingdom, ca.1000 BCE. Holy city of
the three monotheistic religions; capital of Israel.
Jewish Agency (for Palestine) -- Recognized under the Mandate as
a public body for the purpose of advising and cooperating with
the administration of Palestine in matters related to the
establishment of the Jewish National Home. Until 1929 it was the
World Zionist Organization which acted in that capacity;
subsequently non-Zionists were also incorporated. In 1948 the
functions of the Jewish Agency were taken over by the Israel
government. In 1952 it was reconstituted with responsibility for
immigration and absorption.
Jezreel Valley -- Elongated, fertile valley between Galilee and
Samaria.
JNF -- Jewish National Fund.
Johnston Plan -- Plan for distribution of the waters of the
Jordan and its tributaries among Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and
Israel, formulated by Eric Johnston (1896-1963) at the request of
President Eisenhower in 1953.
Jordan -- River, 250 km. in length, running from north to south
along the Syrian-African rift.
Jordania -- Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
Joseph, Dr. Bernard Dov (1889-1980) -- Born in Canada; came to
Palestine in 1918 as soldier in Jewish Legion. Lawyer. Mapai.
From 1936 Legal Adviser to the Jewish Agency. Military Governor
of Jerusalem 1948-49. Member of First, Second and Third Knessets.
Minister of Supply and Rationing 1949-50; subsequently
Communications; Trade; Development. Minister of Justice 1961-65.
Josiah (640-609 BCE) -- King of Judah.
Judah -- Jacob's third son, forefather of the tribe of the same
name.
Judea Capta -- Name given to the province of Judea after its
subjugation by the Romans in 70 AD.
Kafr Qasem -- Large Arab village on the border of the Sharon
Valley and Samaria, 8 km. northeast of Petah Tikva.
Kahane, Kalman -- see Cahane.
Kalkilya -- Arab town on the border of the Sharon and Samaria,
about three km. east of Kfar Saba.
Kaplan, Eliezer (1891-1952) -- Born in Minsk; immigrated 1923.
Labor leader. Engineer. Treasurer of the Jewish Agency from 1933;
Israel's first Minister of Finance, from 1948 until shortly
before his death.
Keren Hayessod (Palestine Foundation Fund) -- One of the major
fund-raising and financial institutions of the World Zionist
Organization; founded in London 1923.
Kartiya -- Abandoned Arab village in the South, located near the
Egyptian-occupied belt separating the Negev from the rest of
Israel.
Kasher (Kosher) -- Proper; food which complies with Jewish
dietary laws; hence Kashrut.
Kattowitz Conference -- Conference of Hovevei Zion (q.v.), held
in Kattowitz in 1884.
Katznelson, Dr. Abraham (1888-1956) -- Born in Russia;
immigrated 1924. Physician. Mapai. Member of the Provisional
Council of State from Jerusalem. First Director General of the
Ministry of Health.
Kaukji, Fauzi el -- Arab military commander. Born in Tripoli,
Lebanon. Graduate of Ottoman Military Academy. Commander of
volunteer units from neighboring countries during Palestine riots
1936; Commander of Arab Liberation Army 1948.
Kesse, Yona (1907-1985) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1926.
Hapoel Hatzair and Mapai. Secretary General of Mapai in the
early 1940s. Member of the Knesset 1949- .
Kfar Saba -- Town in the south of the Sharon Valley, founded
1903.
Kfar Szold -- Kibbutz northeast of the Hula Valley, founded 1942.
Kfar Vitkin -- Moshav in the Sharon, 6 km. north of Netanya,
founded 1930.
Kinot -- Elegies, normally in a religious liturgical context.
Kiryat Anavim -- Collective settlement in the Judean mountains,
10 km. west of Jerusalem. Founded 1920.
Klausner, (Prof.) Josef (1884-1958) -- Born in Lithuania;
immigrated 1919. Historian, editor and publicist. From
ideological standpoint close to Revisionism, yet never officially
member of the Revisionist party.
Klivanov, Jacob (1887-1966) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1921.
Lawyer. Member of the Second and Third Knessets for General
Zionists.
Knesset Record -- Record of Knesset Plenary Proceedings,
equivalent of British Hansard.
Kol (Kolodny), Moshe (1911-1989) -- Born in Russia; immigrated
1932. Founder of Hanoar Hatzioni; Progressive party, which
developed into Liberal party. Head of Youth Aliya (Immigration)
Department of the Jewish Agency 1947-64. Member of Provisional
Council of State; signed Declaration of Independence. Member of
First to Eighth Knessets; Minister of Development and Tourism
1965; Minister of Tourism 1969-74.
Kosoi (Kosoy), Yona -- See Kesse.
Kulturkampf -- German: Conflict of Cultures, 1873-87. Conflict between the German government and the Roman Catholic
Church. Applied to the potential conflict between the government
of Israel and Jewish religious authorities.
Kunteila -- Road junction in eastern Sinai, about 45 km.
northwest of Eilat.
Kuseima (El-Kuseima; Kuzeima) -- Oasis, road junction and Beduin
settlement on the border between Sinai and the Negev, 25 km.
southwest of Nitzana.
Lake Success -- Resort in southeast of New York State;
temporary headquarters of the United Nations 1946-1951.
Lamm, Josef Michael (1899-1976) -- Born in Galicia; immigrated
1939. Lawyer. Labor Zionist leader in Austria. Detained in Dachau
1938-39. Organized immigrants from Central Europe. Member of the
Knesset for Mapai. Judge.
Landau, Haim (1916-1981) -- Born in Cracow; immigrated 1935.
Engineer. Irgun Chief of Staff 1945-48. Member of First to Ninth
Knessets for Herut. Active in Foreign Affairs and Defense.
Minister of Development 1967-70; Transport 1977-81.
Land Transfer Regulations -- Mandatory regulations limiting or
prohibiting the transfer of land to Jews in most of Palestine.
Lankin, Eliahu (1914- ) -- Born in Russia; immigrated (from
China) 1933. Member of Irgun. Detained in Eritrea 1944. Irgun
Commander in Europe 1947. Commander of the Altalena (q.v.).
Member of the First Knesset for Herut.
Latrun Road -- Section of Jerusalem-Tel Aviv road passing beneath
the Latrun monastery and police fortress.
Lausanne (Conference) -- Israel-Arab Conference convened in
the summer of 1939 by the UN Palestine Conciliation Commission.
Lavon (Lubianiker), Pinchas (1904-1976) -- Born in Eastern
Galicia; immigrated 1929. Lawyer. Founder of the Gordonia Youth
Movement. Co-Secretary of Mapai 1938-39. Secretary General of the
Histadrut 1949-51, 55-61. Minister of Agriculture 1950-52;
Minister of Defense in Moshe Sharett government 1953-55, when he
was replaced by Ben-Gurion. In 1961 raised the question of
responsibility for the "Mishap," the activation of an underground
cell in Egypt, known as the Lavon Affair. Forced to resign, he
abandoned Mapai to found the "Min Hayesod" movement.
Law and Administration Ordinance (1948) -- One of the first
items of legislation adopted by the Provisional Council of State,
regulating governmental processes, also known as the "Little
Constituton."
Law of Return -- Law permitting Jews anywhere to immigrate to
Israel and become Israeli citizens; adopted in 1949.
Lawrence, Thomas Edward (Lawrence of Arabia) (1888-1935) --
Born in Wales; British Intelligence officer, credited with
guiding the Arab uprising against the Turkish government in the
Hejaz in June 1916.
Lehi -- Hebrew acronym of Lohamei Herut Israel, Fighters for
the Freedom of Israel. Underground resistance group in pre-state
Israel referred to as the Stern gang, after its founder Abraham
(Yair) Stern. Was formed by breakaway Irgun members in 1940, in
the aftermath of the Irgun decision to cease its attacks against
the British administration for the duration of the war against
Hitler.
Lemberger, S. -- Member of the Knesset for Aguda.
Levin, Isaac Meir (Rabbi) (1894-1971) -- Born in Poland;
immigrated 1940. Head of Aguda in Israel and Chairman of World
Aguda Executive. President of the Jewish community of Warsaw.
Minister of Welfare in First Government 1949-51. Member of the
Knesset until his death.
Litvinov (Wallach), Maxim Maximovich (1876-1952) -- Soviet
Foreign Commissar 1930-39; Ambassador to the U.S. 1941-43.
Livneh (Liebenstein), Eliezer (1902-1975) -- Born in Lodz,
Poland; immigrated 1920. Journalist. Ahdut Ha'Avoda, later Mapai.
Secretary of Haifa Labor Council 1923; Editor of Hagana
clandestine weekly 1942-47. Member of Knesset for Mapai 1949-55.
Criticized for building a "villa," deemed unworthy of a Labor
leader, left the party. After Six Day War of 1967 one of the
founders of Greater Israel Movement.
Lod (Lud; Lydda) -- Town on the border between the Shefela and
the coastal plain. Mentioned in the Bible as part of the
territory of Benjamin. Major Jewish center of learning after the
fall of Jerusalem (70 AD). Under British Mandate, regional center
and railway junction. Captured by IDF in July 1948.
Lod Airport -- International airport of Palestine and
subsequently Israel, named after nearby town. Today Ben-Gurion
Airport.
Lowenstein, Meir David (b.1901) -- Merchant and importer. Aguda
leader. Member of Provisional Council of State and of First
Knesset.
Lubyanka -- KGB headquarters and prison in Moscow,
associated with torture and terror.
Lulav -- Palm branch used for liturgical purposes during the
Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles).
Luria (Lurie), Zvi (1906-1968) -- Born in Poland; immigrated
1925. Hashomer Hatzair; subsequently Mapam. One of the founders
of Kibbutz Ein Shemer and leader of Kibbutz Artzi -- the kibbutz
movement linked with Hashomer Hatzair. Member of Va'ad Leumi,
National Committee of Palestine Jewry; of the People's
Directorate; of Provisional Council of State. Subsequently Member
of Jewish Agency Executive, with seat in New York.
Luz (Luzinsky), Kadish (1895-1972) -- Born in Bobruisk, Russia;
immigrated 1920. Co-founder of Deganya B in the Jordan Valley.
Secretary General of Hever Hakevutzot (Organization of Kevutzot,
small collective settlements). Member of Knesset for Mapai
1951-69; Minister of Agriculture 1955-59; Speaker of the Knesset
1959-69, in later years elected unanimously.
Ma'abarot -- (literally: transit camps.) Temporary, makeshift
settlements established in the early 1950s to house massive
immigration, consisting of tents, barracks made of wood,
asbestos, or corrugated iron. Some survived for decades,
constituting a social, ecological, economic and ultimately a
political problem.
Machpela (Cave of) -- Cave in Hebron, identified as the burial
place of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; sacred for Jews and Muslims.
Magen David (Shield of David) -- Six-cornered star; Jewish
symbol incorporated into the flag of the Zionist movement and
subsequently that of Israel. Sometimes used as abbreviation for
Magen David Adom (Red Magen David), Israel equivalent of Red
Cross.
Maimon (Rabbi) -- See Fishman.
Maimonides (Rambam-Moses ben Maimon) (1135-1204) -- Rabbi,
physician, philosopher. Born in Cordova, Spain; died in Cairo.
Codified Jewish law; provided spiritual guidance to the
perplexed. Foremost religious leader and thinker.
Majdal (literally: tower, in Arabic) -- Normally refers to Arab
town abandoned in 1948, near which Migdal Ashkelon was
established in the 1950s.
Maidanek (Majdanek) -- Near Lublin, Poland. Major German
concentration and extermination camp (1942-45) in which about
360,000 persons, mostly Jews, perished through "gradual
annihilation" or immediate extermination.
Maki (Acronym for Israel Communist Party) -- Established in
1948 through merger of several groups, both Jewish and Arab.
Recognized the new state, its flag and anthem; denied bond
between Israel and diaspora; insisted on Arab right to establish
state in territory allotted under UN Partition Resolution. In
elections from 1949 to 1965 gained 3-6 seats out of 120. In 1965
split between primarily Jewish group inclining to Zionist views
and opposing Soviet all-out anti-Israel stance, which retained
the name "Maki," and the remainder of the party, consisting
primarily of Israel Arabs: Rakach (Acronym for New Communist
List). In 1965 and 1969 Maki gained one seat; in 1973 it merged
with Moked.
Malaya -- Former British Crown Colony in the southern part of the
Malay Peninsula; population mostly Moslem; since 1963 part of the
Federation of Malaysia.
Manara -- Kibbutz in Upper Galilee, near the Lebanese border, 2
km. west of Kiryat Shmona.
Manasseh -- In the Bible, younger son of Josef; also applied to
the area allotted to that tribe: partly in the Carmel, partly in
Transjordan.
Mandate -- Instrument created by the League of Nations in 1919
under which "advanced nations" could be entrusted with the
administration of territories, formerly controlled by Germany or
Turkey, "inhabited by peoples not yet able to stand by themselves
under the strenuous conditions of the modern world." Palestine
came under a British Mandate in 1920 with the responsibility for
giving effect to the Balfour Declaration in favor of the
"Establishment of a National Home for the Jewish people in
Palestine."
Mandatory Government -- The British government administering
Palestine and Transjordan under the Mandate (q.v.).
Mandelbaum House -- House in Jerusalem which under the
Armistice Agreement of 1949 remained in no-man's land, on the
border between Israel-controlled and Jordan-controlled territory;
near it was the Mandelbaum Gate, the only authorized entry point
from the one to the other. The meetings of the Mixed Armistice
Agreements took place nearby.
Ma'oz Haim -- Kibbutz in the Beit Shean Valley, 5 km. to the east
of the city of Beit Shean (Beisan).
Mao Tse Tung (1893-1976) -- Leader and a founder of Chinese
Communist Party; first Chairman of Chinese People's Republic.
Mapai (Acronym for Mifleget Poalei Eretz Israel-the Party of
Eretz Israel Workers) -- Socialist Zionist party. Founded upon
the merger of Achdut Ha'Avoda and Hapoel Hatzair in 1930, it
constituted the the central and dominant political force in the
Labor movement, in the Yishuv of Palestine, in the Zionist
movement and later in the State of Israel. In 1965 joined with
the reconstituted Achdut Ha'Avoda-Poalei Zion to form the first
Alignment, which in 1968 merged with Rafi to form the Israel
Labor party. As long as Mapai existed, all the Prime Ministers,
all Presidents but one, all Knesset Speakers but one, all
Secetaries General of the Histadrut belonged to that party.
Mapam (Acronym for Mifleget Poalim Meuhedet-United Workers'
party) -- Zionist Socialist party formed in 1948, through merger
of Hashomer Hatzair and Achdut Ha'Avoda (q.v.). In the early
years followed a pro-Moscow policy, which it disavowed after
Stalin's death. For many years a partner of Mapai in the Knesset
and government, it advocated a more Marxist socio-economic
program; greater neutrality in foreign policy; greater restraint
in defense; a more forthcoming attitude to Palestine Arab
demands.
Mareshah (Tel) -- Ancient settlement in the Shefela, 2.5 km.
south of Beit Govrin.
Marlin, Shmuel (1910- ) -- Born in Kishinev; Secretary of
Revisionist Party Executive 1933-38. During World War II
cooperated with Hillel Cook (q.v.) in the U.S. Immigrated 1948.
Member of the First Knesset for Herut.
Marshall, George C. (1880-1959) -- American Army officer and
statesman. Chief of Staff 1939-45; Secretary of State 1947-49,
during which time initiated the Marshall Plan for which he was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Secretary of Defense 1950-51.
Massada -- Ruins of castle overlooking the Dead Sea. Founded by
the Hasmoneans and fortified by Herod, it was held by Jewish
Zealots from 66 to 73 CE, three years after the fall of
Jerusalem. They preferred suicide to surrender, and thus became a
symbol in Jewish history.
Mazor, Eliahu (1889-1973) -- Born in Poland; immigrated 1940.
President, Jewish community of Warsaw 1933-38. Industrialist.
Member of First Knesset for Religious Front (Agudat Israel).
Megiddo -- Kibbutz in the west of Esdraelon Valley; near ancient
Tel, remains of one of the earliest and most important fortified
towns in the country, located at the mouth of the Valley of Iron
(Wadi Ara), at a junction of the Via Maris linking Egypt with
Syria and Mesopotamia.
Megillat Hamedina -- Name proposed but not used for the
Official Gazette of the newly established State of Israel.
Mekor Haim -- (literally: source of life) -- Jewish quarter in
the southwest of Jerusalem; originally an agricultural
settlement. Surrounded by Arab quarters, it was isolated during
several months at the beginning of 1948 until relieved in the
course of a Hagana operation at the end of April of that year.
Menora (literally: candelabrum) -- The seven-branched
candelabrum used in the Temple of Jerusalem, symbolically
included in the official emblem of the State of Israel.
Meridor, Ya'acov (1913- ) -- Born in Poland; immigrated
"illegally" in 1932 through Lebanese border. Commander of the
Irgun 1941-43. Member of the First, Third, Fourth, Fifth and
Sixth Knessets for Herut. After years of intensive economic
activity, elected to the Tenth Knesset in 1981; Minister of
Development in the first Begin government 1977-81.
Meteor -- French-made fighter plane, utilized by Israel Air
Force from 1955.
Metulla -- Rural settlement in Upper Galilee, on the border
with Lebanon, at the northern tip of the finger of Galilee,
founded in 1896 by immigrants from Russia.
Mevo Betar -- Cooperative moshav, smallholder settlement, 10 km.
southwest of Jerusalem; established 1950 by Herut.
Meyerson (Meir), Golda (1898-1978) -- Born in Russia; educated in
the U.S.; immigrated 1921. Labor leader; fourth Prime Minister of
Israel. Active in the Histadrut; Secretary Women Workers' Council
1928; Head of Histadrut Political Department 1936. In 1946
appointed acting Head of Jewish Agency Political Department when
Sharett (Shertok) (q.v.) detained by British authorities. Met, in
vain, with King Abdullah of Jordan to achieve an agreement. First
Israel Ambassador to Moscow 1948. Member of the Knesset 1949-74.
Minister of Labor 1949-56; of Foreign Affairs 1956-66. In 1966
appointed Secretary General of Mapai. Upon the death of Levi
Eshkol in 1969 was elected Prime Minister. Although Mapai
retained a reduced plurality in the Knesset in elections of 1974,
and even though the Commission of Inquiry did not find her
personally responsible for the surprise at the beginning of the
Yom Kippur War, she resigned from the government and from the
Knesset in the wake of that war in 1974.
Migs -- Soviet-made fighter planes, used increasingly by Arab air
forces from 1955 onwards, upgraded over the years from the MiG-15
to the MiG-23 model.
Michoels, S. -- Soviet Jewish writer. Active in the Anti-Fascist
Committee during World War II, was accused of cosmopolitanism and
executed in 1953.
Mikunis, Shmuel (1903-1982) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1921.
Actor and co-founder of the Haohel Theater. Trained as an
engineer in France. From 1939 Secretary General and leader of the
Palestine Communist party; retained that position after most Arab
members abandoned the party in 1943. Member of the People's
Council, and the Provisional Council of State in 1948. Member of
the Knesset from First to Sixth Knessets, heading the Israel
Communist List.
Mindszenty, Josef (Cardinal) (1892-1975) -- Catholic Primate of
Hungary. Imprisoned for anti-German activities during World War
II. Opposed Communist regime in Hungary; arrested on charges of
treason 1948. Released in October 1956, took refuge in the
American Embassy; ultimately permitted to emigrate to Austria.
Mintz, Benjamin (1903-1961) -- Born in Lodz, Poland; immigrated
1925. One of the founders of Poalei Agudat Israel (q.v.), and its
leader for many years. Member of the Provisional Council of
State. Member of the First to the Fourth Knessets. Deputy
Speaker. Joined government as Minister of Posts in 1960, against
strong opposition and violent, often very personal, attacks.
Mishmar Haemek -- Kibbutz in the west of the Esdraelon Valley, 6
km. northwest of Megiddo junction. Founded 1936. Scene of heavy
fighting in April 1948.
Mishmar Hayarden -- Rural settlement in Upper Galilee, on the
West Bank of the Jordan River, near the Bridge of the Daughters
of Jacob. Founded 1890. Captured by Syrians in 1948.
Reestablished in 1949, in demilitarized zone.
Mitle -- Strategic mountain pass in the western part of the
Sinai Peninsula.
Mizrachi -- See Hamizrachi.
Moab -- Ancient nation in hilly region east of Dead Sea,
sporadically at war with the Hebrews.
Moetzet Hamedina -- Hebrew for (Provisional) Council of State.
Morgenthau, Henry Jr. (1891-1967) -- U.S. Secretary of Treasury
1934-45; Author of plan for converting German economy after World
War II. Initiated War Refugee Board to rescue victims of Nazi
oppression. Opposed U.S. arms embargo against Israel. General
Chairman of the United Jewish Appeal 1947-50; Honorary Chairman
1950-53.
Morrison Grady Plan (Cantonization Plan) -- British proposal for
a solution of the Palestine problem, presented by Herbert
Morrison in July 1946, calling for federalization under overall
British Trusteeship.
Moses -- Lawgiver of Israel; the leader who led his people out
of bondage in Egypt to the Promised Land of Canaan.
Mosque of Omar -- Erroneous name for the Dome of the Rock, on the
site of the ancient Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. According to both
Jewish and Muslim tradition it was here that Abraham prepared to
sacrifice his son. Present structure established after Muslim
conquest of Jerusalem in 638; converted successively into a
basilica and again a Muslim holy site.
Motza -- Jewish settlement 5 km. west of Jerusalem, on the Tel
Aviv highway. Founded 1860. Scene of masscare of Jews by Arabs in
1929, and of heavy fighting in 1948.
Mount of Olives -- East of the Old City of Jerusalem; site of
major Jewish cemetery whose beginning dates back to ancient
times. In Christian tradition Gethsemane is located on its slope.
Mount Scopus -- Northeast of Jerusalem, on continuation of
Mount of Olives ridge. Traditionally observation point of
attacking Roman legions in 70 AD. After World War I, the Hebrew
University was established there. Remained behind Arab Legion
lines until after the War of 1948.
Mufti (of Jerusalem) -- See Haj Amin el Husseini.
Munich -- Capital of Bavaria. Site of Hitler's party
headquarters. Scene of Munich Pact (September 1938), signed by
Germany, Italy, Great Britain and France, permitting Grmany to
occupy the Czech Sudetenland. Neville Chamberlain, British Prime
Minister proclaimed that the Pact had brought his countrymen
"peace in our times"; it is generally considered as nadir of
European and especially British appeasement of Hitler.
Myerson, Golda -- See Meyerson.
Mystere -- Advanced French-made fighter plane, delivered to
Israel in the 1950s; characterized by its high ceiling and radius
of action.
Nablus (Neapolis) -- Large Arab town north of Jerusalem, near the
site of the Hebrew city of Shechem. Built by Emperor Hadrian in
the second century AD.
Nahal -- IDF formation, whose soldiers combine military training
and operations with agricultural work. Responsible for the
initial stage of establishment of many new rural settlements.
Namir (Nemirovsky), Mordechai (1897-1975) -- Born in Russia;
immigrated 1924. Secretary of Achdut Ha'Avoda 1926-29; later
Mapai. Member of First to Sixth Knessets 1951-69. Secretary
General of Histadrut 1951-56; Minister of Labor and Housing
1956-59. Mayor of Tel Aviv 1959-69.
Naphtali, Peretz (Fritz) (1888-1961) -- Born in Berlin;
immigrated 1933. Active in German Socialist party; Chairman of
German League for Labor Palestine. Economist. Represented Mapai
in the first three Knessets. Minister without portfolio 1951-52;
Minister of Agriculture 1952-55; Minister of Social Welfare 1959,
when he retired from government and Knesset because of ill
health.
Nazareth -- Arab town in Lower Galilee; sacred to Christianity as
site of Jesus' childhood and annunciation.
Nebi Daniel -- Site sacred for Muslims in Judean mountains, 6 km.
southwest of Bethlehem, near Hebron Road. Scene of heavy battle
between Jewish convoy and Arabs in March 1948, culminating in the
surrender of the convoy defenders.
Nebo -- Mountain in Transjordan from which Moses saw the Holy
Land; adopted name of an IDF officer in 1948.
Nebuchadnezzar -- King of Babylonia (605-562 BCE). In 597 BCE
he quelled revolt of Judea and set Zedekiah on throne. In 586 BCE
he destroyed the First Temple in Jerusalem and took king and
notables captive, thus beginning the Captivity.
Necho (Pharaoh) -- King of Egypt (609-593 BCE), of 16th Dynasty.
After fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE, he took Palestine and Syria
after battle of Megiddo.
Negba -- Kibbutz in the southern coastal plain, 12 km. east of
Ashkelon. Founded 1939. Site of heavy battle in 1948 when
Egyptian troops tried repeatedly to subdue it in the effort to
open the road to the north.
Negev -- Southernmost and largest region in Israel, mostly arid,
comprising about one-half of the country.
Nes Ziona -- Town, formerly village, in the center of the
coastal plain; founded in 1883. In 1948 headquarters of the
southern front.
Netanya -- Coastal town in the Sharon, named after philanthropist
Nathan Strauss. Founded 1928.
Nir (Rafalkes), Nahum (1884-1968) -- Born in Warsaw; immigrated
1925. Lawyer. Member of Provisional Council of State. Member of
the First, Third, Fourth and Fifth Knessets representing first
Mapam and later Achdut Ha'Avoda. Deputy Speaker throughout, he
served briefly as Speaker (1959) owing to rare joining of forces
of opposition parties at both ends of the House.
Nirim -- Kibbutz in the western Negev, founded 1946. Attacked and
nearly destroyed by Egyptian invading forces in 1948.
Nisanov, Ezekiel (1886-1911) -- Born in Caucasian Mountains;
immigrated 1905. Co-founder of Bar Giora and Hashomer, Jewish
clandestine self-defense organizations.
Nitzana (Auja el-Hafir) -- Oasis near the Negev-Sinai border;
administrative center under Ottoman and British rule. Captured by
IDF in December 1948. Demilitarized under Israel-Egypt Armistice
Agreement; seat of the Mixed Armistice Commission until 1956.
NKVD -- Soviet secret police; forerunner of the KGB.
Nordau, Max (1849-1923) -- Born in Hungary; died in Paris.
Author, physician and Zionist leader. One of the earliest and
most effective supporters of Theodor Herzl.
Nukrashi (Pasha) (1888-1948) -- Prime Minister of Egypt
1945-1948. Outlawed Moslem Brotherhood; assassinated by one of
its members in December 1948.
Nurock, (Rabbi) Mordechai (1884-1962) -- Born in Latvia;
immigrated 1947. Leader of Latvian Jewry; for a while Prime
Minister of Latvia. Member of the Knesset 1949-62, representing
Mizrachi (United Religious Front); beginning in 1952 served for
some time as Minister of Posts.
The Observer -- British daily newspaper.
Og -- King of Bashan; giant, conquered by Israelites.
Olmert, Mordechai (1911- ) -- Born in Russia; immigrated via
China 1933. Head of Settlement Department of the Herut movement.
Member of the Third and Fourth Knessets.
Omar (581-644) -- Second Caliph; converted to Islam in 618, in
his reign Islam became an imperial power.
Oren, Mordechai (1905- ) -- Born in Galicia; immigrated 1929.
Left wing Mapam leader. Detained and condemned by Czechoslovak
authorities. His trial had major impact on pro-Soviet orientation
of Mapam.
Orenstein, Mordechai -- See Oren.
ORT (Organization for Rehabilitation through Training) -- Jewish
vocational training agency, founded in Russia 1880, for purpose
of ameliorating condition of Jewish masses through modern
vocational training. Eventually established branches in Israel
(1949); in many European, North African and Asian, and more
recently Latin American countries. Although dedicated primarily
to Jews, has been active also among the general population.
Palmach (Hebrew acronym for shock troops) -- Hagana formation,
established in 1941 to prepare for the eventuality of British
evacuation of Palestine under Axis military pressure. Based on
full-time service, dedicated partly to agricultural work, hence
its emblem: two ears of wheat and a sword. Subsequently served as
the reserve force at the disposal of the Hagana High Command;
also comprised specialized units, including nuclei of clandestine
Air Force and Navy. During War of Independence consisted of three
brigades involved in some of the heaviest fighting. Its
headquarters dissolved in October 1948, by order of Ben-Gurion.
Partition Plan -- Plan for the partition of Palestine, adopted by
the General Assembly of the UN on 29 November 1947.
Pasha (Glubb) -- See Glubb Pasha.
Passfield (Lord) (former Sidney Webb) -- British Colonial
Secretary. In the wake of the Arab riots of 1929, and pursuant to
the Hope-Simpson Report which concluded that the economic
absorptive capaacity of Palestine had been exhausted, issued
White Paper, reinterpreting Balfour Declaration and drastically
arresting the development of the Jewish National Home.
Peel Commission -- Royal commission appointed by British
government in May 1936 under the chairmanship of Viscount Peel.
The majority recommended the partition of Palestine into Arab and
Jewish states, with Jerusalem and a corridor leading to it
remaining under British rule. The Jewish state was to comprise
all of Galilee, the Valley of Esdraelon, and part of the coastal
plain; altogether 1,000 sq. mi. (2,500 sq. km.).
People's Council -- Representative Assembly established in
Palestine in May 1948, comprising 37 members drawn from Jewish
Agency and from National Committee; upon the declaration of
independence became Provisional Council of State.
Peri, Eliezer (1902-1970) -- Born in Galicia; immigrated 1926.
Co-founder of Kibbutz Merhavia. Mapam representative in First and
Second Knessets; abandoned the party following the establishment
of the Alignment between Mapam and Israel Labor party.
Persitz, Shoshana (1893-1969) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1925.
Publisher, educator. Member of Tel Aviv Municipality. Member of
the First to Third Knessets representing General Zionists;
chairperson of Education and Culture Committee.
Petah Tikva -- City in the central coastal plain, 10 km. east of
Tel Aviv. Founded 1878 as first Jewish agricultural settlement in
modern times. City since 1937.
Petlyura -- Ukrainian nationalist leader, responsible for
widespread atrocities against Jews in the aftermath of Russia's
defeat in World War I.
Pharaoh Necho -- See Necho.
Pinkas, David Zvi (1895-1952) -- Born in Hungary; immigrated
1925. Mizrachi. Member of Provisional Council of State and of the
First and Second Knessets. Chairman of Finance Committee. In 1952
Minister of Communications.
Pisga (literally: peak) -- Mountain east of the Jordan.
PKP (Hebrew acronym for Palestine Communist party) -- See Maki.
Plehve, Vyacheslav K. (1864-1904) -- Russian Minister of
Interior; responsible for repressive and anti-Semetic policies;
met with Herzl to discuss Zionist solution for Jewish problem.
Poalei Agudat Israel -- Aguda (q.v.) Workers' Organization, set
up in Poland in 1922; initiated activities in Palestine in 1925.
While identified with Aguda on religious matters, advocates
cooperation with secular workers' organization and service in the
IDF. In most elections ran on joint list with Aguda. In 1960
joined Coalition against the advice of the Aguda Council of
Sages.
Poalei Zion -- Hebrew for Workers of Zion. Jewish
Socialist-Nationalist Workers' party which first emerged in 1901
when widespread associations of Zionist workers met in Minsk.
After several splits and mergers with other parties, joined with
others to set up Mapai in 1930.
Port Said -- Port in Egypt, on the Mediterranean, at the
northern entrance of the Suez Canal, founded 1859.
Pogromchik (Russian) -- Participant in attack on Jews.
Praesidium (of the Knesset) -- Knesset body comprising the
Speaker and his deputies.
Procopius (d.562) -- Byzantine historian.
Progressives -- Political party in Israel, established in
October 1948 through unification of Haoved Hatzioni, Aliya
Hadasha and the Union of General Zionists (A) (q.v.).
Provisional Council of State -- Legislature of Israel from 14
May 1948 to 14 February 1949.
Provisional Government (Cabinet) -- Government of the State of
Israel from 14 May 1948 to 7 March 1949.
Raab (Family) -- Co-founders of Petah Tikva (q.v.).
Rachel's Tomb -- Tomb of Jacob's favorite wife, near Bethlehem.
R.A.F. -- Royal Air Force.
Rafael, Yitzhak (1914- ) -- Born in Poland, immigrated 1935.
Hapoel Hamizrachi, Mafdal (National Religious Party). Head of
Jewish Agency Immigration Department 1948-54; member of the
Second to the Eighth Knessets. Deputy Minister of Health 1961-65;
Minister of Religious Affairs 1974-77.
Rafah (Rafiach) -- Arab town in the south of the Gaza Strip,
astride the Egyptian border.
Ramallah -- Arab town in the northern Judean mountains, 13 km.
north of Jerusalem.
Ramat Rachel -- Kibbutz in the south of Jerusalem; founded 1926.
Destroyed by Arab attackers in 1929; suffered during the riots of
1936-39; captured by Egyptian irregular troops and destroyed,
subsequently recaptured, in 1948; rebuilt in 1952.
Ramle -- Town on the border of the Shefela and the coastal plain;
established in 717 as the center of Muslim rule.
Ras al-Nakab -- Promontary, 10 km. northwest of Eilat (q.v.).
Ras Natzrani -- Bulge on the coast of the Gulf of Eilat, opposite
the island of Tiran; Egyptian stronghold from which navigation in
the Tiran Straits was interdicted.
Rathenau, Walter (1867-1922) -- German Jewish industrialist and
statesman; Minister of Reconstruction 1921, and Foreign Minister
1922. Assassinated by German nationalists.
Raziel-Na'or, Esther (1911- ) -- Born in Russia; immigrated
1923. Active in IZL. Member of First to Eighth Knessets.
Recanati, Abraham (1888-1980) -- Born in Saloniki, Greece;
immigrated 1934. Active in Revisionist movement. Member of First
Knesset, Herut.
Rehavia -- Jewish quarter in west Jerusalem, founded 1921.
Rehoboam (King) (932-914 BCE) -- Son of Solomon; under him the
northern tribes revolted and formed the new Kingdom of Israel.
Reilly (General) -- American soldier, head of the United Nations
Truce Supervision Organization in Palestine.
Remez, Aharon (1919- ) -- Born in Palestine; first Commander
of the Israel Air Force. Member of the Third Knesset.
Remez, David (1886-1951) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1913.
Achdut Ha'Avoda, subsequently Mapai. Secretary General of the
Histadrut 1935-45; first Minister of Transportation; subsequently
Minister of Education.
Repetor, Berl (1902-1989) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1920.
Achdut Ha'Avoda, later Mapai, then Mapam. Active in Histadrut.
Member of the Provisional Council of State and of the First
Knesset for Mapam.
Revivim -- Kibbutz in the northern Negev, 25 km. south of
Beersheba; established 1943.
Rhee, Singman (b.1875) -- President of the Republic of (South)
Korea 1948-60.
Rhodes Lines -- Armistice lines established by the Armistice
Agreements signed on the island of Rhodes in 1949.
Ribbentrop, Joachim von -- German Foreign Minister under Hitler
1938-45.
Riftin, Ya'akov (1907-1978) -- Born in Poland; immigrated 1929.
Hashomer Hatzair and Mapam. Member of the Knesset 1949-65. Upon
the establishment of the Alignment with the Labor party left
Mapam and established Independent Zionist left-wing party, which
failed in Histadrut elections.
Rimalt, Dr. Elimelech (1907-1987) -- Born in Galicia;
immigrated 1939. Educator. General Zionist. Member of the
Knesset 1951-77. Chairman of the Education and Culture Committee,
active in promoting educational reform. Minister of Posts 1969.
Ringelblum, Dr. Emanuel (1900-1944) -- Born in Galicia. Educator,
historian. Poalei Zion leader and an organizer of the Warsaw
Ghetto revolt. Killed by Gestapo.
Rishon Lezion -- Town in central coastal plain, 8 km. south of
Tel Aviv, founded 1882.
Rude Pravo -- Czech daily newspaper; official organ of Czech
Communist party.
Rokach, Israel (1889-1959) -- Born in Jaffa. Electrical engineer.
General Zionist. Mayor of Tel Aviv 1936-53. Member of First to
Third Knessets. Minister of Interior 1953-55. Deputy Speaker
1957-59.
Rosen (Rosenblueth), Pinhas (Felix) (1887-1978) -- Born in
Germany; immigrated 1931. Lawyer. President of German Zionist
Organization. Leader of Progressive party, subsequently Liberal,
ultimately Independent Liberal Party (q.v.). Member of the First
to the Sixth Knessets. First Minister of Justice.
Rosenberg, Ethel and Julius -- Condemned to death for conspiring
to transmit atomic secrets to the USSR during World War II;
executed June 1953.
Rosh Ha'ayin -- Urban settlement, 4 km. east of Petah Tikva,
established in 1950.
Rosh Hanikra -- Promontory on the Mediterranean, on the border
between Israel and Lebanon.
Rothschild, (Baron) Edmond de (1845-1934) -- Banker,
philanthropist, patron of scientific and cultural projects and
supporter of settlement projects in Palestine.
Rubin, Reuven (b.1893) -- Born in Rumania; immigrated 1912. One
of Israel's foremost painters. Israel's first Ambassador to
Romania.
Rubin, Dr. Hanan (1908-1962) -- Born in Germany; immigrated 1933.
Hashomer Hatzair, then Mapam. Member of the First to the Fifth
Knessets.
Rutenberg, Pinchas (1879-1942) -- Born in Ukraine; immigrated
1919. Electrical engineer. Participated in aborted attempt at
revolution in Russia 1905. Active in Jewish self-defense;
commander of Tel Aviv during riots of 1921. In the same year
obtained concession for utilization of kinetic energy of the
Yarmuk-Jordan catchment area. Founder of Palestine Electrical
Corporation 1923. Maintained close contact with Emir Abdullah.
Safed -- City in Upper Galilee; one of the three main Crusader
fortresses. In the sixteenth century, center of Jewish mysticism
(Kabala). Its Jewish quarter was attacked by Arabs in 1929, and
again in 1936. Besieged at the beginning of the War of 1948, it
was relieved by the Palmach, in an operation which resulted in
the capture of the Arab parts of the city.
Sa'id Nuri (1888-1958) -- Iraqi officer and statesman. Trained in
Turkish Military Academy, joined Arab revolt under Faisal 1916;
first chief of staff of Iraqi Army 1921. From 1930 served 14
times as Prime Minister. Negotiated treaty with Great Britain
ending the British Mandate and establishing Iraqi independence.
Conceived the Fertile Crescent concept calling for the
unification of Syria, Iraq, Transjordan and Palestine under
Hashemite rule, with a measure of autonomy for Palestine Jews.
Autocrat; anti-Communist; assassinated in the course of the 1958
revolt which brought Hashemite rule in Iraq to an end.
Salame -- Arab village, on the eastern outskirts of Tel Aviv.
Served as base for attacks against the city in 1947-48;
subsequently abandoned.
Samaria -- Northern section of the central highlands of
Palestine, named after the city of Samaria (Shomron, later
Sebastia), capital of the biblical Kingdom of Israel. From 1949
to 1967 mostly in Jordanian territory; in the wake of the Six Day
War came under Israel military government.
Samuel, Herbert (Sir, later Viscount) (1870-1963) -- Leader of
British Liberal party; first Jewish member of British Cabinet.
First British High Commissioner for Palestine 1920-25. During
World War I contributed to the formulation of Balfour
Declaration. As High Commissioner laid foundations of Mandatory
administrative system. Appointed Haj Amin al-Husseini (q.v.) as
Mufti of Jerusalem. During his tenure the quota system for Jewish
immigrants, based on the economic absorptive capacity of the
country, was introduced by the Mandatory government.
Sanhedrin (Hagedola, the Great) -- Supreme Jewish juridical and
legislative body in Jerusalem, during the period of the Second
Temple; perished with the destruction of the Temple.
Sapir, Josef (1902-1972) -- Born in Jaffa. Agronomist. Active in
Farmers' Union, leader of Jewish Citrus Growers. Leader of the
"bourgois" center-right, and their representative on Hagana High
Command. Mayor of Petah Tikva 1940-51; Member of the Knesset for
General Zionists, later Gahal, from 1949 until his death.
Minister of Transport 1952-55; Minister without portfolio
1967-70.
Sapir (Koslowsky), Pinchas (1909-1975) -- Born in Poland;
immigrated 1929. Mapai. Active in Mekorot (water company).
Director General of Ministry of Defense 1948-53; of Finance
1953-55. Minister of Commerce and Industry 1955-64; of Finance
1964-74.
Sarafand (Zerifin) -- Major British, subsequently IDF military
base in the coastal plain, 3 km. northeast of Ramle.
Saris (Shoresh) -- Arab village about 19 km. east of Jerusalem,
astride the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv road. Base for several attacks
against Jewish convoys to the besieged city; captured by Hagana
in May 1948. Cooperative Jewish settlement since end of that
year.
Saud (Ibn Abdel Aziz) (1901-1969) -- King of Saudi Arabia,
following his father's death, from 1953 until his ouster and
expulsion from the Kingdom in 1964.
Scopus -- See Mount Scopus.
Second Temple -- Temple built in Jerusalem at the end of the
fifth century BCE by exiles returned from Babylon; enlarged by
Maccabees in the second century BCE; rebuilt completely by Herod
at the beginning of the Common Era; destroyed by Romans following
the capture of Jerusalem in 70 CE.
Sefer Torah -- Scroll containing the handwritten Hebrew text of
the five books of Moses, the Pentateuch, used by Jews for
liturgucal purposes.
Sejera (Ilania) -- Cooperative village in Lower Galilee, near
vital road junction. Founded 1899 as an agricultural estate;
served as transit station for many young immigrants, including
David Ben-Gurion, and birthplace of Hashomer (q.v.). In 1948 site
of heavy fighting with Arab Liberation Army, which attempted to
isolate Galilee from the rest of the country.
Sephardim -- Descendants of Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal
at the end of the fifteenth century.
Serlin, Joseph (1906-1974) -- Born in Bialistok, Poland;
immigrated 1933. Lawyer. General Zionist, then Liberal. Member of
the Knesset 1949-74. Deputy Speaker of Second, Fifth and Sixth
Knessets. Minister of Health 1952-55.
Seventh Brigade -- Armored infantry brigade, established in
May 1948, to serve as strategic reserve; involved soon afterwards
in heavy fighting against the Arab Legion (q.v.) for the road to
Jerusalem.
Sha'ag (Zwebner), Abraham Chaim (Rabbi) (1883-1958) -- Born
in Jerusalem. Co-founder of Mizrachi in Palestine. Member of
National Committee of Palestine Jewry, active in social welfare.
Member of First Knesset, National Religious Front.
Sha'ar Hagai (Bab el-Wad) -- Entrance from the Shefela going up
the Judean mountains to Jerusalem.
Sha'ar Hagolan -- Kibbutz in the Jordan Valley, about 2 km.
southeast of the Zemach junction.
Shapira, Moshe (Chaim) (1902-1970) -- Born in Grodno, Russia;
immigrated 1926. Leader of Hapoel Hamizrachi; subsequently
President of National Religious Party, established in 1956.
Deputy member, later member of the Executive of the Jewish Agency
from 1935 to 1948, responsible for immigration. Minister of
Immigration and Health in Provisional Government. Member of the
Knesset 1949-70. Member of Cabinet almost continuously, holding
at various times the portfolios of Minister of Interior, Social
Welfare, and Religious Affairs.
Sharef, Ze'ev (1906-1984) -- Born in Romania; immigrated 1925.
Secretary of the Cabinet 1948-57; Director General, Prime
Minister's Office 1957-59; Member of the Knesset 1965-74;
Minister of Commerce and Industry 1966; concurrently Minister of
Finance as of 1968; Minister of Housing 1969-74.
Sharett (Shertok), Moshe (1894-1965) -- Born in Kherson, Russia;
immigrated 1906. Mapai. Studied law in Constantinople, served
briefly in Turkish Army 1915; after World War I continued his
studies in London. Head of Political Department of the Jewish
Agency 1933-48. Member of the Provisional Council of State.
Member of the Knesset 1949-65. First Foreign Minister of Israel
1948-56. Prime Minister 1953-55. Resigned following disagreements
with Ben-Gurion. Chairman of the Jewish Agency Executive 1961-65.
Sharm el-Sheikh (Ophira) -- Southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula,
controlling the Straits of Tiran. From 1971 to 1982 site of urban
Jewish settlement.
Shattner, Mordechai (1904-1964) -- Born in Galicia; immigrated
1924. Mapai. Member of Kibbutz Ein Harod. Active in Va'ad Leumi.
Shazar (Robashov), Zalman (1889-1974) -- Born in Russia;
immigrated 1924. Third President of Israel. Poalei Zion; Achdut
Ha'Avoda; later Mapai. Historian and journalist. Subeditor, later
editor of Davar. Member of the Knesset 1949-59; Minister of
Education and Culture 1949-50; President 1963-73.
Shechem (Nablus) -- Arab city in the Samarian mountains;
settled continuously from Canaanite period.
Sheffer, Ze'ev (1891-1964) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1913.
Mapai. Member of Kibbutz Ayelet Hashachar. Member of the Hagana
Command. Deputy Speaker of the Second Knesset.
Sheikh Jarrah -- Arab quarter in northeast Jerusalem, astride the
road to Mount Scopus; site of massacre of passengers of Jewish
convoy in April 1948, and of heavy fighting thereafter, as well
as in 1967.
Shenhavi, Mordechai (1900- ) -- Born in Russia; immigrated
1919. Mapam. Member of Kibbutz Mishmar Haemek. Active in
Development of kibbutz industry.
Shertok, (Shertock) Moshe -- See Sharett.
Shofman, Josef (1903-1978) -- Born in Warsaw, Poland; immigrated
1940. Lawyer, industrialist. Revisionist party; Herut. Member of
the Knesset 1955-69; Ambassador to Venezuela 1970.
Sheinkin, Menahem (1871-1924) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1906.
Early Zionist leader. One of the founders of Tel Aviv.
Shimoni, David (1886-1956) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1909.
Hebrew poet.
Shishak (Sheshonk I) -- Egyptian king of the 22nd Dynasty, died
ca.924 BCE.
Shitrit, Bekhor Shalom (1895-1967) -- Born in Tiberias. Mapai.
Police officer under the British Mandate. Lawyer. Chief
Magistrate of Tel Aviv 1945. Minister of Police and Minorities in
Provisional Government. Member of the Knesset from 1949 until his
death; Minister of Police 1948-66.
Shofar -- Ram's horn used by Jews for liturgical purposes.
Shostak, Eliezer (1911- ) -- Born in Poland. Immigrated 1935.
Herut; subsequently Merkaz Hofshi, La'am, Likud. Secretary
General of National Workers' Union, linked with Revisionist
party. Member of the Knesset since 1951. At various times Deputy
Speaker. Minister of Health 1977-84.
Shulhan Arukh -- Codification of Jewish law, completed in the
sixteenth century by Rabbi Josef Karo of Safed.
Sinai -- Peninsula and land bridge betweem Asia and Africa.
Slansky, Rudolf -- Leader of Communist party and Vice Premier of
Czechoslovakia; tried in 1952 for "Trotskyite, Titoist and
Zionist" activities, found guilty and executed.
Sneh (Kleinbaum), Moshe (1909-1972) -- Born in Radzyn, Poland;
immigrated 1940. General Zionist, subsequently Mapam, ultimately
Communist. Physician. Head of Hagana High Command, 1942-46.
Director of Jewish Agency European Office 1946-47. Member of the
Knesset 1949-65, and again from 1969 until his death,
representing Mapam until the Prague Trials (see Slansky) in 1953;
subsequently the Communist party; ultimately the New Communist
Party (Maki; q.v.) which considered Israel's actions in the Six
Day War as legitimate self-defense.
Sobibor -- Major Nazi concentration and extermination camp in
Poland 1942-45.
Sodom -- Biblical city, at the southern end of the Dead Sea. Site
of major mineral extraction plant. In 1948 isolated for over six
months. Used figuratively as incarnation of evil, particularly
parsimoniousness.
Sokolov, Nahum (1859-1936) -- Early Zionist leader; founder and
editor of the Zionist movement weekly 1907; President of the
World Zionist Organization 1931-36.
Solomon's Gulf -- see Eilat, Gulf of.
Sprinzak, Joseph (1885-1959) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1910.
Leader of the Hapoel Hatzair, moderate left wing politiical
party; subsequently one of the founders and leaders of Mapai
(q.v.). Chairman of the Zionist Action Committee. Secretary
General of the Histadrut 1945-49. Speaker of the Provisional
Council of State. First Speaker of the Knesset 1949-59. Largely
responsible for the Knesset rules of procedure and conduct.
Stamper, Joshua (1852-1908) -- Born in Hungary; immigrated 1869.
Co-founder of Petah Tikva 1878.
Stamper, Shlomo Yitzhak (1877-1961) -- Son of Joshua. Born in
Jerusalem. Chairman of the Petah Tikva Local Council and its
first Mayor.
Star of David -- Six-cornered star; since Middle Ages a Jewish
symbol used in synagogues and cemeteries; subsequently utilized
in the distinctive badge, the yellow star, to differentiate
between Jew and non-Jew. Constitutes part of the flag of the
Zionist movement and the State of Israel.
Sten gun -- Submachine gun developed in Great Britain during
World War II for relatively cheap mass production; one of the
first products of Israel's fledgeling arms industry.
Sternberg, Benzion (1894-1962) -- Born in Bukovina (later
Romania); leader of Revisionist party in Romania; immigrated
1940. Member of Provisional Council of State.
Stuermer, Der -- Virulent anti-Semitic and pornographic weekly,
published in Nuremberg, Germany from the early 1920s to 1945, by
Julius Streicher, executed as war criminal following Nuremberg
trial.
Success (Lake) -- See Lake Success.
Sudanese (Cushites in the Bible) -- Citizens of the Sudan; some
participated in the War of 1948 in the ranks of the Egyptian
Army.
Sukenik, Elazar (Professor) (1889-1953) -- Born in Poland;
immigrated 1912. Archeologist. In 1947 identified Dead Sea
Scrolls and purchased some of them. Father of Yigael Yadin
(q.v.).
Sutzkever, Abraham (1913- ) -- Born in Lithuania; immigrated
1947. Yiddish poet. During World War II active in the Vilna
Ghetto; escaped and joined partisans.
Tabib, Abraham (1889-1950) -- Born in Yemen; immigrated 1907.
Active in Organization of Yemenites. Member of Va'ad Leumi,
representing Yemenites, and from 1944 Mapai. Member of First
Knesset.
Tallit -- Prayer-shawl, made of white cloth with dark stripes,
with tassels at the four corners, worn by Jews during prayer.
Tamad (Bir) -- Oasis in western Sinai.
Targum Yonatan -- Translation of the Bible into Aramaic.
Tashah -- The year 5708 of the Hebrew calendar, coinciding mostly
with 1948.
Tel-al-Muteila -- Hill northwest of the Sea of Galilee, near the
mouth of the Jordan River. In May 1951 site of bitter battle with
Syrian forces trying to establish a foothold to the east of the
river.
Tel Aviv -- Coastal city in the center of Israel, founded in
1909. First Jewish city; name taken from the Hebrew translation
of Theodor Herzl's utopian novel Altneuland. In 1950 merged with
neighboring Jaffa.
Templars -- Fundamentalist Protestant religious sect; took its
name from a medieval monastic order active at the time of the
Crusades. During the second half of the nineteenth century
Templars from southern Germany immigrated to Palestine where they
established a series of agricultural settlements and urban
quarters.
Temple Mount -- Site of the First and Second Temple in
Jerusalem; since the Arab conquest of the city in the seventh
century partly occupied by the Dome of the Rock and the Mosque of
el-Azhar.
Tewfik Toubi (1922- ) -- Born in Haifa. One of the leaders of
the National Liberation League-Palestine Arab Communist
organization in the 1940s; joined Israel Communist party in
August 1948. Member of the Knesset since its inception
representing Israel Communist party, subsequently the New
Communist List (Rakach); ultimately Hadash-Front for Democraecy
and Peace. Member of World Peace Council. Publisher of Communist
weekly.
Tiberias (Lake of) -- See Sea of Galilee, also known as Kinneret
or Lake of Galilee, after the main town on its shores.
Tiran (Straits of) -- Waterway connecting the Red Sea with the
Gulf of Eilat.
Tirat Zvi -- Kibbutz in the Beisan Valley. Founded in 1937; named
after Rabbi Zvi Kalisher, early proponent of religious Zionism.
Scene of heavy fighting in 1938 and 1948.
Titoists -- Followers of Josip Broz Tito, leader of Yugoslavia
after the World War II; proponent of Marxism independent of the
Soviet Union.
Titus (ca.40-81 CE) -- Roman emperor who captured and destroyed
Jerusalem 70 CE.
Titus' Arch -- Erected in Rome by Titus' successor to
commemmorate his triumph over the Jews.
Tnuva -- Cooperative marketing organization for agricultural
products sponsored by the Histadrut.
Torah -- Hebrew name for the Pentateuch, the first five books of
the Bible; also used to denote the sum total of Jewish religious
teachings.
Toubi, Tewfik -- See Tewfik Toubi.
Transition Act -- One of the first laws adopted by the
Provisional Council of State, to regulate the constitutional
arrangements of the new state of Israel; also known as the
"Little Constitution."
Transjordan -- Area of Palestine east of the Jordan River.
Triangle -- Heartland of Samaria, including the towns of Tulkarm,
Kalkilya and Nablus.
Trotskyites -- Followers of Leon Trotsky (1879-1940), Communist
leader who advocated "permanent revolution," or "pure Communism."
Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) -- Organization
established by resolution of the United Nations Security Council,
in May 1948, to supervise the truce in Palestine; subsequently
charged with similar tasks concerning armistice, separation of
forces and other arrangements. Its first chief was Count
Bernadotte (q.v.).
Tuchazevsky, Marshall -- Russian general during World War II.
Tulkarm -- Arab town on the border between the Samarian mountains
and the Sharon Valley, 14 km. east of Netanya.
Tzemah -- Town at the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee; near
junction of road coming from the south, following the Jordan
River, and one following the circumference of the lake.
UJA (United Jewish Appeal of America) -- Fund-raising arm of
organized North American Jewry, for the development of the Jewish
National Home in Palestine, later Israel, and the relief and
reconstruction of distressed Jewish communities throughout the
world.
Um el Fahm -- Arab town, between Hadera and Afula, overlooking
the Iron Valley.
UN Emergency Force -- Military force established by the United
Nations in November 1956, to facilitate and supervise the
withdrawal of British, French and Israeli forces from Egypt; its
firt chief was the Canadian General E.L.M. Burns.
Ussishkin, Menahem (1863-1942) -- Born in Mogilev, Russia;
immigrated 1919. Engineer. Active in Hovevei Zion (q.v.) from
1885, joined Zionist movement at its inception. Spokesman of
Russian Zionists, participated in all Congresses. Leader of
practical Zionists who emphasized importance of practical work in
Palestine over political and diplomatic work elsewhere. Led
revolt against Herzl over Uganda (1904); major opponent of
Partition in 1937. From 1919-23 presided over the representative
body of Palestine Jewry. Chairman of Jewish National Fund
1923-42.
Va'ad Leumi (National Committee) -- Executive of the statutory
Jewish community in Palestine, recognized by the British
Mandatory government as the official spokesman of the community;
elected by the annual sessions of the elected assembly (Asefat
Hanivcharim), its composition reflected the relative strength of
the political parties.
Vampire -- British-made jet fighter-bomber, supplied to Egypt in
considerable quantities from 1949 to 1956.
Vardi (Rosenblum), Herzl Naftali (1903- ) -- Attorney,
journalist. Born in Kovno, Lithuania; immigrated 1935. Joined
Zionist Revisionist party at its inception; member of Provisional
Council of State; signatory of Declaration of Independence.
Vilenska, Esther (1918-1975) -- Born in Vilna, Lithuania;
immigrated 1938. Active in Palestine, later Israel Communist
party from 1940; editor of its organ "Kol Ha'am" (Voice of the
People). Member of the Second, Third and Fifth Knessets.
Vilna (Vilnius) -- Capital of Lithuania from 1323. Held at
different periods by Russia, Germany, Poland. Its large Jewish
population was virtually exterminated in the Holocaust.
Vilna Gaon (1720-1797) -- Rabbi Elijah, the Gaon (Genius) of
Vilna. Outstanding Jewish scholar; founder and leader of the
Mitnagdim (opponents), who decried the mysticism, and what they
perceived as the superstition and primitiveness of the Hassidic
movement, restoring learning to its traditional central place,
while trimming from it some of its overly scholastic aberrations.
Wadi Ara -- Narrow valley connecting the coastal plain with the
Valley of Esdraelon; part of the historical Via Maris linking
Egypt with Syria and Mesopotamia. At its northern end is Megiddo
(q.v.). Occupied by Iraqi troops in 1948, it was transferred to
Israel under the Armistice Agreement of 1949.
Warhaftig, Zerah (1906- ) -- Born in Volkovisk, Byelorussia;
immigrated via Poland, Lithuania, Japan and the U.S. in 1947.
Attorney and scholar. Hapoel Hamizrachi; National Religious
Front. Member of Va'ad Leumi; head of its Legal Department.
Member of Provisional Council of State, and of the First to the
Ninth Knessets 1949-81. Minister of Religios Affairs 1962-74.
War of Independence -- First Israel-Arab War, waged in Palestine
from the morrow of the UN Partition Resolution (29 November 1947)
to the signature of the last Armistice Agreement, between Syria
and Israel (20 July 1949). Local Arabs were soon joined by
volunteers from neighboring countries; after Israel's Declaration
of Independence on 14 May 1948 regular Arab forces invaded the
country. The original Arab objective was the prevention of the
establishment of a Jewish state; subsequently its elimination,
and when that proved blatantly impossible, the reduction of its
size; none of these was achieved.
Wehrmacht -- Armed forces of the German Reich.
Weinstein, Baruch (1898-1982) -- Born in Balta, Russia;
immigrated 1923. Journalist. Revisionist party; after 1948
joined General Zionists.
Weizmann, Dr. Chaim (1874-1952) -- Born in Motel, Russia;
immigrated 1949. Professor of Chemistry. Joined Zionist movement
in 1901; active in Democratic Fraction. Became British citizen in
1910. During World War I, working for British Admiralty, created
synthetic acetone vital for production of explosives. Helped to
procure the Balfour Declaration (q.v.). President of the Zionist
Organization 1920-31, 1935-46. During World War II, advocated the
establishment of a Jewish military formation to fight in Allied
ranks. After the war opposed active resistance to British
presence and policy in Palestine. His influence waned as Great
Britain ignored its obligations towards the Jewish National Home.
In 1948 invited to join the Provisional Council of State as its
President; elected first President of Israel in February 1949, an
office he occupied until his death.
Weizsaecker, Richard von -- President of the Federal Republic
of Germany; previously Mayor of Berlin; Member of the Bundestag
representing Christian Democratic Union; President of the
Evangelical Church. Active in the German-Israel Parliamentary
Group, has maintained his interest in Israeli and Jewish matters
also while holding the office of President.
Western Land of Israel (Cisjordania) -- Part of Palestine lying
west of the Jordan River.
White Paper (1939) (MacDonald White Paper) -- Statement on policy
on Palestine issued by the British government on 17 May 1939, so
called after the then Colonial Secretary Malcolm MacDonald. It
provided for drastic reduction in Jewish immigration, with a
total of 75,000 over five years after which further immigration
would require Arab consent; prohibition of the sale of lands to
Jews in some, and its severe limitation in other parts of the
country, and the establishment of an independent Palestine with a
two-thirds Arab majority after an interim period of 10 years.
Rejected by Jews unanimously as a betrayal of solemn
undertakings, and by most Arabs as not going far enough, it
nevertheless served as a basis for British policy during the
crucial years of the Holocaust and World War II.
Wiedergutmachung (Reparations) -- German term used to denote the
material reparations made to Jewish and other victims of Nazi
brutality and greed.
Wilenska, Esther -- See Vilenska.
Wilna -- See Vilna.
Wilner, Meir (1918- ) -- Born in Vilna, Poland; immigrated
1938. Joined Palestine Communist party in 1939; elected to the
Central Committee in 1944. Member of the Provisional Council of
State and cosignatory of Declaration of Independence. Member of
the Knesset since 1949, representing Israel Communist party;
after split in 1965, joined the mainly Arab New Communist List
(Rakach), together with Tewfik Toubi. As Secretary General he
headed the party's parliamentary list. Only continuously serving
member from 1948 to 1989.
WIZO -- Women's International Zionist Organization, founded in
London in 1920, with the aim of uniting Jewish women for the
purpose of establishing and maintaining social welfare, child
care and educational institutions in Palestine, later in Israel.
Active in Israel and throughout the Jewish world, with the
exception of the U.S.
Wolfson, David (1856-1914) - Born in Lithuania; died in Hamburg,
Germany. Merchant. An advocate of ideas akin to those of Hovevei
Zion, became one of Herzl's early adherents and trusted
lieutenants. Second President of the World Zionist Organization
1905-11. Founder and Chairman of the Jewish Colonial Trust, the
financial instrument of the WZO 1899-1914.
Ya'ari (Wald), Meir (1897-1987) -- Born in Galicia; immigrated
1920. Member of Kibbutz Merhavia and foremost formulator of the
principles of the Kibbutz Artzi, calling for a far-reaching
collectivist approach in all spheres of life 1927. Together with
Ya'akov Hazan (q.v.), leader of movement for over 50 years.
Co-founder of Mapam (q.v.), and for many years its Secretary
General. Member of the Knesset 1949-73. Advocating Zionist
Marxism, he qualified his outright pro-Soviet orientation only
following the Jewish doctors' trials in Moscow and the Oren trial
(q.v.) in Prague in the mid-1950s.
Yad Mordechai -- Kibbutz in the southern coastal plain, named
after Mordechai Anilevitz, commander of the uprising in the
Warsaw Ghetto. Founded 1943; capture by Egyptian Army after heavy
fighting in May 1948; subsequently recaptured and rebuilt.
Yadin (Sukenik), Yigael (1917-1984) -- Born in Jerusalem.
Professor of Archeology; second Chief of the General Staff of the
IDF 1949-52; politician. Active in the Hagana (q.v.) from early
youth; Chief of Operations during War of Independence (q.v.);
much of the time Acting Chief of Staff. Formulated and
implemented the principles of Israel's reserve system-citizens'
army. Resigned as Chief of Staff following differences with
Ben-Gurion over budgetary allocations 1952. As archeologist was
responsible for the excavation at Massada and Hatzor, as well as
the purchase and partial deciphering of the Dead Sea scrolls. In
1976 one of the founders of the Democratic Movement for Change,
as a centrist political force. Having won 15 seats, Yadin joined
Begin's first government as Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of
the Ministerial Committee on Welfare; participated in peace
negotiations with Egypt. DMC disintegrated, and in 1981 Yadin
returned to his archeological pursuits.
Yad Vashem (Heroes' and Martyrs' Authority) -- Israel official
authority for the commemoration of victims of the Holocaust,
established in Jerusalem in accordance with a law adopted in
1953.
Yaffe, Bezalel (1868-1925) -- Born in Grodno, Russia; immigrated
1909. Early adherent of Zionist movement in Russia; head of the
Jewish Community Board of Jaffa-Tel Aviv; member of the Va'ad
Leumi (q.v.).
Yariv, S. Sh. (Saba shel Yariv-Yariv's grandfather) -- Nom de
plume used by Ben-Gurion, after his first grandson.
Yarkon River -- River crossing the coastal plain, 30 km. in
length, flowing into the Mediterranean north of Tel Aviv.
Yarmuk River -- Largest river in Transjordan; separates Golan
from the Gilead, it flows into the Jordan south of the Sea of
Galilee.
Yasif (Kufr) -- Large Arab rural settlement, 8 km. east of Acre.
Yassin (Dir) -- See Dir Yassin.
Yehuda, Zvi (1888-1964) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1906.
Co-founder of first kibbutz, Degania, and later of first moshav,
Nahalal. Member of First Knesset, Mapai.
Yellin-Mor (Friedmann), Nathan (1913-1979) -- Born in Poland;
immigrated 1941. Leader of Lehi: Fighters for the Freedom of
Israel; detained by British authorities. After the murder of
Bernadotte (q.v.) detained by Israel. Amnestied, elected to First
Knesset heading the Freedom Fighters' List. While most former
members of Lehi subsequently joined Herut, Yellin-Mor advocated a
pro-Soviet orientation and close cooperation with Palestinians.
Yemenites -- Jews originating from the Yemen, in the southwest of
the Arabian Peninsula.
Yemin Moshe -- Jewish quarter in Jerusalem; first to be
established in the mid-nineteenth century outside the Old City
walls. Named after its sponsor Sir Moses Montefiore. In 1948
scene of heavy fighting.
Yeshiva -- Jewish religous institution of higher learning; while
authorized to ordain Orthodox rabbis, frequented by many to study
for study's sake, in accordance with Orthodox precepts.
Yevsekzia (Yevrei Sekzia) -- Jewish section of the Soviet secret
police (NKVD; KGB). Manned largely by Jews, who were widely
condemned as renegades.
Yishuv -- Jewish population of Palestine.
Yisrael (Agudat) -- See Agudat Israel.
Yivo -- Jewish scientific organization, dedicated to humanities
and social sciences, including the history of Jews in Eastern
Europe. Originally in Poland, it managed to transfer some of its
archives and personnel to the U.S.
Yekaterinoslav -- City in Russia.
Yotvata -- Kibbutz in the Arava, 40 km. north of Eilat;
established by Nahal (q.v.) in 1951; handed to civilian settlers
in 1957.
Yunichman, Shimshon (1907-1961) -- Born in Poland;
immigrated 1935. Physician. Revisionist, subsequently Herut.
Member of the Third and Fourth Knessets.
Za'im, Hosni -- See Hosni Za'im.
Zebulun -- Tribe of Israel, descendent from fifth son of Jacob;
believed to have settled on the Mediterranean coast, in the
vicinity of the Bay of Acre.
Zhid -- Pejorative term applied to Jews in Russia and Poland.
Zichron Ya'akov -- Town in the southern part of Mount Carmel;
founded in 1882 by immigrants from Romania, and named after Baron
James de Rothschild. In 1902 venue of the first representative
assembly of the Yishuv (q.v.); during World War I center of NILI,
a small clandestine organization active on behalf of the British
behind Ottoman lines.
Zimri -- Army commander in ancient Israel, who killed his king
and inherited him (1 Regum, Chapter 16); prototype of hypocrisy
and ingratitude.
Zion, Hovevei -- See Hovevei Zion.
Zion, Poalei -- Movement which sought to combine political
Zionism with the class interests of the Jewish proletariat and
the realization of socialism. Originated at the end of the
nineteenth century and soon spread throughout the then Jewish
world. After several splits and mergers combined with other
parties to establish Mapai (q.v.) in 1930. Ben-Gurion and Ben Zvi
(q.v.) were among its early adherents.
Zion Square -- Square in the center of the Jewish part of
Jerusalem.
Zionist Congress -- Parliament of the Zionist movement created
by Herzl. At first it met every year (1897-1901); then every
second year (1903-13; 1921-39); after World War II at irregular
intervals.
Zionist Executive -- Elected by Zionist Congress to carry on the
day to day operations of the movement.
Zisling, Aharon (1901-1964) -- Born in Russia; immigrated 1904.
Member of Kibbutz Ein Harod. Mapai; after split in 1944 leader
of Achdut Ha'Avoda, then Mapam. Minister of Agriculture in
Provisional Government and cosignatory of Declaration of
Independence. Member of First and Second Knessets.
Zwebner (Sha'ag), A.H. -- See Sha'ag.
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