WORLD MACHAL - Volunteers from overseas in the Israel Defense Forces

Personal Stories

There are over 400 personal stories on this website. Please use the SEARCH bars in order to find names of interest to you. If you are are aware of missing names or you have stories to contribute please use the CONTACT menu at the top or the FORM at the bottom of each page.

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The “Cobbers”

By Michael Finegood The recent death of Sam Lewis brings to an end the career of one of the distinguished members of Machal.

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Mike Isaacson

I was born in Pretoria in 1924. In 1940 at the age of 16 I was apprenticed to the Iscor Steel Works which

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Hank Greenspun

Hank Greenspun was born in Brooklyn on the 27th August 1909. He studied law before joining the United States Army and during World

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Cyril Steinberg

Cyril Steinberg was a volunteer from South Africa who served as a navigator in Air Transport Command in Israel’s War of Independence. To

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Ben Ocopnick

I was born in Montreal, Canada, on 30th October 1924. I was a member of the Habonim youth movement in Toronto before joining

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Sydney Cohen

(Photo: South Africa’s 800) Sydney Cohen was born and grew up in the small rural village of Bothaville in the Orange Free State

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Marvin K. Broder

Left to right: David Ophir, Marvin Broder, David Ben-Gurion, Samuel Yanai (Samech), David Hacohen During World War II Marvin served in the U.S.

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Jack Fleisch

Jack Fleisch was born in South Africa on thee 12th April, 1924. At the age of 16 he joined the South African army

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Benny Grunfeld

EXCERPT FROM “A TEENAGER IN HITLER’S DEATH CAMPS” BY BENNY GRUNFELD “IN ISRAEL, 1948-1952”   Benny Grunfeld was born in Cluj in Romania

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Adrian Philips

Adrian Phillips, a graduate of the City College of New York and veteran of the U.S. Merchant Marines, volunteered for the “Secret Fleet”

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Mary Berger

Mary Berger became a surgical nurse in 1942 in the U.S. Army. She was sent abroad when her hospital moved to Normandy following

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Jules (Jean) Kraut

Jules in uniform as paratrooper in Belgian SAS – 1945 My experience in the Belgian underground during the occupation by the Germans helped

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