Kingdom of Israel (group)
Encyclopedia
The Kingdom of Israel or Tzrifin Underground, was a violent political group active in Israel in the 1950s.
"Kingdom of Israel," was the name used by the group's members but it was better known to the Israeli public as the "Tzrifin Underground", after the Tzrifin
military base, where its members were put on trial. The group carried out attacks on the diplomatic facilities of the USSR and Czechoslovakia (in protest against those countries' anti-semitic policies, such as the Slánský trial and the Doctors' plot
) and occasionally shot at Jordanian troops stationed along the border in Jerusalem.
The group's leader, Yaakov Heruti
, recruited former Lehi
colleagues, as well as adolescents from Revisionist Zionist homes who had been brought up to see Lehi fighters as heroes. Separately, another Kingdom of Israel member, Yaakov Blumenthal, "organized another clique of activists in Jerusalem, most of whom were Orthodox Jews." The group never had more than two dozen members.
. The sophistication of the bombing led Shin Bet head Isser Harel
to believe that former Lehi members were responsible, but an intensive investigation failed to turn up the perpetrators.
In April 1953 a member of the group attacked the violinist Jascha Heifetz
for playing music by Richard Strauss
. The Tzrifin Underground also attacked the Czech embassy three times and sent two letter bombs to West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer
, in protest against the Israeli-German reparations agreement
.
Sixteen members of the group were tried before a military court headed by Benjamin Halevy
. The defendants were represented by Shmuel Tamir
; the trial established him as Israel's "foremost political lawyer." The prosecutor was Haim Cohn. Although the government was unable to prove the group's involvement in the Soviet embassy attack, Halevy nevertheless deemed the group "a severe danger to state security." Heruti was sentenced to ten years in prison, another leader, Shimon Bachar, was sentenced to twelve, and several others were given sentences ranging from one to seven years. However, two years later they were freed and Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion
commuted their sentences.
"Kingdom of Israel," was the name used by the group's members but it was better known to the Israeli public as the "Tzrifin Underground", after the Tzrifin
Tzrifin
Tzrifin is an area in Gush Dan in central Israel, located on the eastern side of Rishon LeZion and including parts of Be'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two cities....
military base, where its members were put on trial. The group carried out attacks on the diplomatic facilities of the USSR and Czechoslovakia (in protest against those countries' anti-semitic policies, such as the Slánský trial and the Doctors' plot
Doctors' plot
The Doctors' plot was the most dramatic anti-Jewish episode in the Soviet Union during Joseph Stalin's regime, involving the "unmasking" of a group of prominent Moscow doctors, predominantly Jews, as conspiratorial assassins of Soviet leaders...
) and occasionally shot at Jordanian troops stationed along the border in Jerusalem.
The group's leader, Yaakov Heruti
Yaakov Heruti
Yaakov Heruti is an Israeli lawyer and right-wing activist. He was a member of the pre-state militant group Lehi and the leader of the group Kingdom of Israel, which bombed the Soviet embassy in Tel Aviv and carried out other acts of political violence in the 1950s...
, recruited former Lehi
Lehi (group)
Lehi , commonly referred to in English as the Stern Group or Stern Gang, was a militant Zionist group founded by Avraham Stern in the British Mandate of Palestine...
colleagues, as well as adolescents from Revisionist Zionist homes who had been brought up to see Lehi fighters as heroes. Separately, another Kingdom of Israel member, Yaakov Blumenthal, "organized another clique of activists in Jerusalem, most of whom were Orthodox Jews." The group never had more than two dozen members.
Activities
On February 9, 1953, the group planted more than 70 pounds of explosives at the Soviet embassy. The ensuing explosion severely injured the embassy's housekeeper and significantly damaged the embassy building. Two other embassy employees were also lightly hurt, one of them the Soviet ambassador's wife. The USSR cut diplomatic relations with Israel in response. The bomb was planted by Joseph Menkes, who later planned the assassination of Rudolf KastnerRudolf Kastner
Rudolf Israel Kastner was a Jewish-Hungarian journalist and lawyer who became known for facilitating the departure of Jews out of Nazi-occupied Hungary during the Holocaust...
. The sophistication of the bombing led Shin Bet head Isser Harel
Isser Harel
Isser Harel was spymaster of the intelligence and the security services of Israel and the Director of the Mossad . In his capacity as Mossad director he oversaw the abduction, and secret transport to Israel, of Holocaust organizer Adolph Eichmann....
to believe that former Lehi members were responsible, but an intensive investigation failed to turn up the perpetrators.
In April 1953 a member of the group attacked the violinist Jascha Heifetz
Jascha Heifetz
Jascha Heifetz was a violinist, born in Vilnius, then Russian Empire, now Lithuania. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time.- Early life :...
for playing music by Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
. The Tzrifin Underground also attacked the Czech embassy three times and sent two letter bombs to West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer
Konrad Adenauer
Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer was a German statesman. He was the chancellor of the West Germany from 1949 to 1963. He is widely recognised as a person who led his country from the ruins of World War II to a powerful and prosperous nation that had forged close relations with old enemies France,...
, in protest against the Israeli-German reparations agreement
Reparations Agreement between Israel and West Germany
The Reparations Agreement between Israel and West Germany was signed on September 10, 1952, and entered in force on March 27, 1953...
.
Arrest and trial
On May 26, 1953, two members of Blumenthal's group, acting on their own initiative, were caught planting explosives at the Ministry of Education building in Jerusalem. They wanted to protest the Ministry's role in the government's attempts to secularize religious immigrants from North Africa. The two were carrying detailed lists of Kingdom of Israel members, enabling the authorities to quickly roll up the group.Sixteen members of the group were tried before a military court headed by Benjamin Halevy
Benjamin Halevy
-Biography:Halevy was born Ernst Levi in Weissenfels, Germany and educated at the Universities of Freiburg, Göttingen and Berlin. He immigrated to what was then the British Mandate of Palestine in 1933 after Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany, and studied at the Hebrew University of...
. The defendants were represented by Shmuel Tamir
Shmuel Tamir
Shmuel M. Tamir was a prominent Israeli independence fighter, lawyer, Knesset member from 1965 to 1980, and Minister of Justice in the government of Menachem Begin from 1977 until 1980-Irgun:...
; the trial established him as Israel's "foremost political lawyer." The prosecutor was Haim Cohn. Although the government was unable to prove the group's involvement in the Soviet embassy attack, Halevy nevertheless deemed the group "a severe danger to state security." Heruti was sentenced to ten years in prison, another leader, Shimon Bachar, was sentenced to twelve, and several others were given sentences ranging from one to seven years. However, two years later they were freed and Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion
' was the first Prime Minister of Israel.Ben-Gurion's passion for Zionism, which began early in life, led him to become a major Zionist leader and Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization in 1946...
commuted their sentences.