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Yitzhak AradIsraeli historian
Date of Birth: 11.11.1926
Country:  Israel |
Content:
- Early Life and Holocaust Survival
- Witness to Atrocities
- Partisan Resistance
- Post-War Years
- Military Career
- Director of Yad Vashem
- Holocaust Denial Controversy
- Accusations and Controversy
- International Condemnation
- Refusal to Cooperate
- Legacy
Early Life and Holocaust Survival
Born in PolandYitzhak Arad was born on November 11, 1926, in the town of Swięciany, Poland (now Švenčionys, Lithuania). After the German invasion of Poland in 1939, Arad and his sister fled to Lithuania.
Witness to Atrocities
In 1941, Arad and his sister were confined to a ghetto in Lithuania. During the Holocaust, he witnessed the horrors inflicted on the Jewish community by the Nazis and their Lithuanian collaborators.
Partisan Resistance
In 1943, Arad escaped from the ghetto and joined the "Chapayev" partisan unit in Belarus. He later joined the "Vilnius" Lithuanian partisan unit, participating in sabotage operations against German troops.
Post-War Years
Arrival in PalestineAfter the war, Arad illegally left the Soviet Union and arrived in Palestine in 1945. He fought for the establishment of Israel in the Israeli War of Independence.
Military Career
In the Israel Defense Forces, Arad rose through the ranks to the position of Brigadier General. He served as a company commander, battalion commander, and eventually as a brigade commander.
Director of Yad Vashem
From 1972 to 1993, Arad served as the director of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem. He published numerous books and articles on the history of the Holocaust.
Holocaust Denial Controversy
Arad opposed the classification of the 1930s Holodomor in Ukraine as genocide, arguing that it had a class-based, rather than national, component.
Accusations and Controversy
Investigation by Lithuanian AuthoritiesIn 2008, Arad was accused by Lithuanian nationalists of participating in the killing of civilians during his time as a partisan fighter. The Lithuanian prosecutor's office issued a summons for his interrogation.
International Condemnation
The investigation drew widespread condemnation from the Jewish community and international organizations. Yad Vashem and the Simon Wiesenthal Center accused Lithuania of historical revisionism and downplaying its own role in the Holocaust.
Refusal to Cooperate
The Israeli Ministry of Justice refused to hand over Arad's notice of suspicion to Lithuania. Arad criticized Lithuania's attempts to prosecute him as a whitewash of its own wartime atrocities.
Legacy
Yitzhak Arad was a renowned historian, Holocaust survivor, and military veteran. His experiences and insights continue to shed light on the horrors of the Holocaust and the importance of preserving historical memory.
