Yehoshua Zettler
Encyclopedia
Yehoshua Zettler was an Israel
i who served as the Jerusalem commander of Jewish paramilitary group Lehi
, often also called as the Stern gang. He conceived and carried out the September 17, 1948, assassination of Swedish
Count Folke Bernadotte
, representing the United Nations Security Council
as a mediator in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
, and later part of Israel
. The community — including Zettler's home — was largely destroyed in Arab riots in 1921, and the house was reconstructed after his family and other residents returned. He attended the Geula school in Tel Aviv
.
in 1937. Zettler was one of the organization's top commanders. He took part in the July 6, 1938 raid in which five Arabs were shot and killed in the village of Biyar 'Adas
, the first organized attack in Mandatory Palestine by Jewish forces against an Arab village.
In June 1940, when the Irgun decided to suspend its underground military activities against the British during World War II
, Zettler followed Avraham Stern
and others who created Lehi (a Hebrew language
acronym for Lohamei Herut Yisrael, translated into English as Israel Freedom Fighters), which would follow a combative approach with the British authorities in Palestinian Mandate.
Zettler organized the robbery of a Tel Aviv
bank in September 1940 and was subsequently arrested for the crime in May 1941. He then escaped from British detention and was chosen by the Lehi leadership to be its chief of operations. He eluded police for several weeks, until December 2, 1940, when he was re-arrested at his Tel Aviv apartment. Zettler was sentenced to a 15-year term. He was sent to the British prison in Acre
after his involvement in a riot at the Jerusalem central jail.
In Acre, he immediately began to plan his escape. On May 4, 1947, as part of the Acre Prison break
, he helped lead 42 members of the Irgun and Lehi out of the prison, as well as nearly 200 Arab prisoners, after a series of explosions set at the walls of the prison were used to blast holes in the prison's walls and doors.
During the 1948 war, Zettler commanded Lehi forces in Jerusalem. He took part in the April 1948 attack on Deir Yassin
, a hilltop village overlooking western areas of Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road. The attack by Irgun and Lehi forces ended in a massacre of over 100 Palestinian civilians, spreading a wave of fear through other Palestinian communities. This is considered a major turning point in the 1948 war.
diplomat Count Folke Bernadotte
, who represented the United Nations Security Council
as a mediator in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
Bernadotte, in consultation with the United States and United Kingdom, advocated a plan under which major revisions in territorial holdings would be made in accordance with the November 1947 United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, including placing Jerusalem under UN control. Many Israelis opposed these proposals and Lehi leaders decided that Bernadotte's assassination would be the most effective means to prevent their implementation.
The assassination plan was discussed in a September 10, 1948, meeting of Lehi leadership in a Tel Aviv apartment, which included Israel Eldad
, Nathan Yellin-Mor
and future-Prime Minister of Israel
Yitzhak Shamir
. Shamir later recounted that "The idea was conceived in Jerusalem by Lehi members. Our opinion was asked, and we offered no opposition." With no objections raised, Zettler came back to Jerusalem and selected the team that would carry out the attack on Bernadotte, which included Meshulam Makover and Yehoshua Cohen
.
On September 17, 1948, Bernadotte came to Jerusalem in a car with General Åge Lundström
on his way to meet Israeli official Dov Yosef
, who was then the military governor of the Israeli-controlled portion of Jerusalem's New City.. Bernadotte's car was stopped by an Israeli Army Jeep at a roadblock in the Katamon neighborhood. Cohen ran from the Jeep pointed a gun inside the car and shot at Bernadotte and the others in the back seat of the car at point-blank range, riddling him with bullets. Bernadotte had been hit six times, killing him almost instantaneously. The car was driven at full speed to Hadassah Hospital
on Mount Scopus
, but doctors there were unable to do anything for Bernadotte, who was bleeding profusely from his wounds. French Army Colonel André Serot, who had been sitting in the back seat next to Bernadotte, was also killed. The tires of the other vehicles in Bernadotte's convoy had been shot out, and the hit team fled to Shaarei Pina, where they were hidden by haredi
supporters of Lehi, before moving on to Tel Aviv in a furniture truck.
Zettler acknowledged his role in directing the assassination in a 1988 interview with Israel Radio. In a 1988 interview with Dan Margalit
, Zettler stated that the decision to go ahead with the assassination was made based on Bernadotte's proposals for separate Jewish and Arab states in what had been the Palestinian Mandate. He did not regret his actions, stating that "When we demonstrated in front of [Bernadotte] and told him 'Go away from our Jerusalem, go back to Stockholm', he did not respond. So we had no choice."
After the killing, then-Prime Minister of Israel David Ben-Gurion
banned Lehi as "a gang of rogues, cowards and low schemers" and had its members arrested, though, they were released immediately.
, just outside Jerusalem, in which over 100 unarmed Palestinians were murdered by members of Zettler’s Lehi and the Irgun, which was led by Menachem Begin
, who later became prime minister of Israel.
Zettler remained on Israel's political right wing, retaining a long-held opposition to Arabs and foreigners in Israel, and believed that Israel should retain territories occupied
during the Six-Day War
.
Zettler died at age 91 on May 20, 2009.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i who served as the Jerusalem commander of Jewish paramilitary group 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...
, often also called as the Stern gang. He conceived and carried out the September 17, 1948, assassination of Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Count Folke Bernadotte
Folke Bernadotte
Folke Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg was a Swedish diplomat and nobleman noted for his negotiation of the release of about 31,000 prisoners from German concentration camps during World War II, including 450 Danish Jews from Theresienstadt released on 14 April 1945...
, representing the United Nations Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
as a mediator in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
Biography
Zettler was born on July 15, 1917 in Kfar Sava, a Jewish community in what became the British Mandate of Palestine following World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and later part of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. The community — including Zettler's home — was largely destroyed in Arab riots in 1921, and the house was reconstructed after his family and other residents returned. He attended the Geula school in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
.
Haganah, Irgun and Lehi
He joined the Haganah when he was 14-years old, and became part of Haganah Bet in 1933, which became the IrgunIrgun
The Irgun , or Irgun Zevai Leumi to give it its full title , was a Zionist paramilitary group that operated in Mandate Palestine between 1931 and 1948. It was an offshoot of the earlier and larger Jewish paramilitary organization haHaganah...
in 1937. Zettler was one of the organization's top commanders. He took part in the July 6, 1938 raid in which five Arabs were shot and killed in the village of Biyar 'Adas
Biyar 'Adas
Biyar 'Adas is a former Palestinian Arab village located 19 km northeast of the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo. In 1945 the village had a population of 300 and a total land area of 5,492 dunums.-History:...
, the first organized attack in Mandatory Palestine by Jewish forces against an Arab village.
In June 1940, when the Irgun decided to suspend its underground military activities against the British during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Zettler followed Avraham Stern
Avraham Stern
Avraham Stern , alias Yair was a Jewish paramilitary leader who founded and led the militant Zionist organization later known as Lehi .-Early life:Stern was born in Suwałki, Poland...
and others who created Lehi (a Hebrew language
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
acronym for Lohamei Herut Yisrael, translated into English as Israel Freedom Fighters), which would follow a combative approach with the British authorities in Palestinian Mandate.
Zettler organized the robbery of a Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
bank in September 1940 and was subsequently arrested for the crime in May 1941. He then escaped from British detention and was chosen by the Lehi leadership to be its chief of operations. He eluded police for several weeks, until December 2, 1940, when he was re-arrested at his Tel Aviv apartment. Zettler was sentenced to a 15-year term. He was sent to the British prison in Acre
Acre, Israel
Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....
after his involvement in a riot at the Jerusalem central jail.
In Acre, he immediately began to plan his escape. On May 4, 1947, as part of the Acre Prison break
Acre Prison break
The Acre Prison break was a operation undertaken by the Irgun on May 4, 1947 in the British Mandate of Palestine, in which its men broke through the walls of Acre prison and freed 28 incarcerated Irgun and Lehi members.-Background:...
, he helped lead 42 members of the Irgun and Lehi out of the prison, as well as nearly 200 Arab prisoners, after a series of explosions set at the walls of the prison were used to blast holes in the prison's walls and doors.
During the 1948 war, Zettler commanded Lehi forces in Jerusalem. He took part in the April 1948 attack on Deir Yassin
Deir Yassin massacre
The Deir Yassin massacre took place on April 9, 1948, when around 120 fighters from the Irgun Zevai Leumi and Lohamei Herut Israel Zionist paramilitary groups attacked Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, a Palestinian-Arab village of roughly 600 people...
, a hilltop village overlooking western areas of Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road. The attack by Irgun and Lehi forces ended in a massacre of over 100 Palestinian civilians, spreading a wave of fear through other Palestinian communities. This is considered a major turning point in the 1948 war.
Assassination of Folke Bernadotte
Zettler was responsible for conceiving and carrying out the September 17, 1948, assassination of SwedishSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
diplomat Count Folke Bernadotte
Folke Bernadotte
Folke Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg was a Swedish diplomat and nobleman noted for his negotiation of the release of about 31,000 prisoners from German concentration camps during World War II, including 450 Danish Jews from Theresienstadt released on 14 April 1945...
, who represented the United Nations Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
as a mediator in the aftermath of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
Bernadotte, in consultation with the United States and United Kingdom, advocated a plan under which major revisions in territorial holdings would be made in accordance with the November 1947 United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, including placing Jerusalem under UN control. Many Israelis opposed these proposals and Lehi leaders decided that Bernadotte's assassination would be the most effective means to prevent their implementation.
The assassination plan was discussed in a September 10, 1948, meeting of Lehi leadership in a Tel Aviv apartment, which included Israel Eldad
Israel Eldad
Israel Eldad , was a noted Israeli independence fighter and Revisionist Zionist philosopher...
, Nathan Yellin-Mor
Nathan Yellin-Mor
Nathan Yellin-Mor was a Revisionist Zionist activist, Lehi leader and Israeli politician. In his later years, he became a radical pacifist who supported negotiations with the Palestine Liberation Organization and big concessions in the Israeli-Arab conflict....
and future-Prime Minister of Israel
Prime Minister of Israel
The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and the most powerful political figure in Israel . The prime minister is the country's chief executive. The official residence of the prime minister, Beit Rosh Hamemshala is in Jerusalem...
Yitzhak Shamir
Yitzhak Shamir
' is a former Israeli politician, the seventh Prime Minister of Israel, in 1983–84 and 1986–92.-Biography:Icchak Jeziernicky was born in Ruzhany , Russian Empire . He studied at a Hebrew High School in Białystok, Poland. As a youth he joined Betar, the Revisionist Zionist youth movement...
. Shamir later recounted that "The idea was conceived in Jerusalem by Lehi members. Our opinion was asked, and we offered no opposition." With no objections raised, Zettler came back to Jerusalem and selected the team that would carry out the attack on Bernadotte, which included Meshulam Makover and Yehoshua Cohen
Yehoshua Cohen
thumb|Yehoshua Cohen on the left, with David TovyahuYehoshua Cohen was a leading member of Lehi, a Zionist militant group, who fired the fatal shots in the assassination of United Nations envoy Folke Bernadotte on September 17, 1948...
.
On September 17, 1948, Bernadotte came to Jerusalem in a car with General Åge Lundström
Åge Lundström
John Åge Lundström was a Swedish Air Force general and horse rider who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics and in the 1924 Summer Olympics....
on his way to meet Israeli official Dov Yosef
Dov Yosef
Dov Yosef was an Israeli politician and statesman. Yosef served in a variety of ministerial positions during the first two Knessets and was the country's second Minister of Justice, serving twice .-Background:...
, who was then the military governor of the Israeli-controlled portion of Jerusalem's New City.. Bernadotte's car was stopped by an Israeli Army Jeep at a roadblock in the Katamon neighborhood. Cohen ran from the Jeep pointed a gun inside the car and shot at Bernadotte and the others in the back seat of the car at point-blank range, riddling him with bullets. Bernadotte had been hit six times, killing him almost instantaneously. The car was driven at full speed to Hadassah Hospital
Hadassah Medical Center
Hadassah Medical Center is a medical organization that operates two University hospitals at Ein Kerem and Mount Scopus in Jerusalem, Israel, as well as schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, and pharmacology affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.The hospital was founded by Hadassah,...
on Mount Scopus
Mount Scopus
Mount Scopus , جبل المشهد , جبل الصوانة) is a mountain in northeast Jerusalem. In the wake of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Mount Scopus became a UN protected Jewish exclave within Jordanian-occupied territory until the Six-Day War in 1967...
, but doctors there were unable to do anything for Bernadotte, who was bleeding profusely from his wounds. French Army Colonel André Serot, who had been sitting in the back seat next to Bernadotte, was also killed. The tires of the other vehicles in Bernadotte's convoy had been shot out, and the hit team fled to Shaarei Pina, where they were hidden by haredi
Haredi Judaism
Haredi or Charedi/Chareidi Judaism is the most conservative form of Orthodox Judaism, often referred to as ultra-Orthodox. A follower of Haredi Judaism is called a Haredi ....
supporters of Lehi, before moving on to Tel Aviv in a furniture truck.
Zettler acknowledged his role in directing the assassination in a 1988 interview with Israel Radio. In a 1988 interview with Dan Margalit
Dan Margalit
-Biography:Dan Margalits studied international relations and modern Jewish history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He began writing for the Israeli newspaper Haaretz in the 1960s. He is married to Dana. His daughter, Shira Margalit, is the deputy director-general of the Reshet television...
, Zettler stated that the decision to go ahead with the assassination was made based on Bernadotte's proposals for separate Jewish and Arab states in what had been the Palestinian Mandate. He did not regret his actions, stating that "When we demonstrated in front of [Bernadotte] and told him 'Go away from our Jerusalem, go back to Stockholm', he did not respond. So we had no choice."
After the killing, then-Prime Minister of Israel 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...
banned Lehi as "a gang of rogues, cowards and low schemers" and had its members arrested, though, they were released immediately.
Massacre at Deir Yassin
Zettler has been implicated as a leader in the massacre at the village of Deir YassinDeir Yassin
Deir Yassin was a Palestinian Arab village of around 600 people near Jerusalem. It had declared its neutrality during the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine between Arabs and Jews...
, just outside Jerusalem, in which over 100 unarmed Palestinians were murdered by members of Zettler’s Lehi and the Irgun, which was led by Menachem Begin
Menachem Begin
' was a politician, founder of Likud and the sixth Prime Minister of the State of Israel. Before independence, he was the leader of the Zionist militant group Irgun, the Revisionist breakaway from the larger Jewish paramilitary organization Haganah. He proclaimed a revolt, on 1 February 1944,...
, who later became prime minister of Israel.
Personal life
He was married in 1948 to Bella Shechter, a member of Lehi; Together they had two daughters: Ariella and Ephrat.Zettler remained on Israel's political right wing, retaining a long-held opposition to Arabs and foreigners in Israel, and believed that Israel should retain territories occupied
Israeli-occupied territories
The Israeli-occupied territories are the territories which have been designated as occupied territory by the United Nations and other international organizations, governments and others to refer to the territory seized by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 from Egypt, Jordan, and Syria...
during the Six-Day War
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
.
Zettler died at age 91 on May 20, 2009.