Minna Weizmann (; 1889–1925) was a Russian Jewish doctor who served in Syria and Palestine during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Weizmann also served as a spy for Germany. Weizmann was born in

Motal Motal or Motol (; Russian and West Polesian: Мотоль; ; ''Motele'') is an agrotown in Ivanava District, Brest Region, Belarus. It is located about 30 kilometres west of Pinsk on the Yaselda River. History Founded as a royal city of ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

(now in

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

) to a prominent family. Her parents were Oizer and Rachel Czermerinsky Weizmann. Weizmann's most famous sibling was

Chaim Weizmann Chaim Azriel Weizmann ( ; 27 November 1874 – 9 November 1952) was a Russian-born Israeli statesman, biochemist, and Zionist leader who served as president of the World Zionist Organization, Zionist Organization and later as the first pre ...

, the President of

Zionist Organization The World Zionist Organization (; ''HaHistadrut HaTzionit Ha'Olamit''), or WZO, is a non-governmental organization that promotes Zionism. It was founded as the Zionist Organization (ZO; 1897–1960) at the initiative of Theodor Herzl at the F ...

and the first

President of Israel The president of the State of Israel (, or ) is the head of state of Israel. The president is mostly, though not entirely, ceremonial; actual executive power is vested in the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet led by the Prime Minister of Israel, pr ...

. Weizmann attended medical school in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. She was a socialist who hated the Czarist government. In 1913, she immigrated to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, where she became one of the few female physicians. In 1914, she met Curt Prufer, who recruited her to be a spy in

British Egypt The history of Egypt under the British lasted from 1882, when it was occupied by British forces during the Anglo-Egyptian War, until 18 June 1956, when the last British forces withdrew in accordance with the Anglo-Egyptian evacuation agreem ...

for Germany. Weizmann was caught during one of her missions in Italy and sent back to Egypt. If she had been convicted of spying for Germany, she would have been imprisoned or killed. Possibly due to the prominence of her family, or due to her good reputation in Egypt, she was allowed to return to Russia. Weizmann survived the war and continued her medical service with the Zionist women's organization, Hadassah.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weizmann, Minna 1889 births Year of death missing Date of death unknown Soviet physicians Russian Jews Jewish physicians People from Motal Russian socialists Weizmann family