Yosef Aluf Avidar (; 7 May 1906 – 13 September 1995) was an Israeli statesman,

Haganah Haganah ( , ) was the main Zionist political violence, Zionist paramilitary organization that operated for the Yishuv in the Mandatory Palestine, British Mandate for Palestine. It was founded in 1920 to defend the Yishuv's presence in the reg ...

commander, author and ambassador to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

Early life

Avidar was born on 7 May 1906 as Yosef Rochel in

Kremenets Kremenets (, ; ; ) is a city in Ternopil Oblast, western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Kremenets Raion, and lies north-east of the Pochaiv Lavra. The city is situated in the historic region of Volhynia and features the 12th-c ...

in the

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 ...

and in what is now modern-day

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. His father was Joshua Rochel; his mother, Shprinza. Avidar was a

peddler A peddler (American English) or pedlar (British English) is a door-to-door and/or travelling vendor of good (economics), goods. In 19th-century United States the word "drummer" was often used to refer to a peddler or traveling salesman; as exem ...

during his time in Ukraine. In 1929 Avidar immigrated to

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

Career

Avidar became a senior commander in a Jewish paramilitary organization called the

. Placed in control of the supply programs, he was responsible for the idea and of constructing an underground ammunition factory called the Ayalon Institute, which was a major supplier of arms to the Haganah. In 1948, after the creation of the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

, he changed his name from Rochel to Avidar based on an acronym of his two daughters' names. Avidar was the Israeli

quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land army, armies, a quartermaster is an officer who supervises military logistics, logistics and requisitions, manages stores or barracks, and distri ...

during the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...

and later served as the

deputy chief of staff Deputy Chief of Staff and similar titles can refer to: Military positions United States Air Force *Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Cyber Effects Operations of the United States Air Force * Deputy Chief of St ...

. After the war, he served as ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1955 to 1958 and as ambassador to Argentina from 1961 to 1965.

Death

Avidar died on 13 September 1995 at the age of 89 from a

lung infection Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a term often used as a synonym for pneumonia but can also be applied to other types of infection including lung abscess and acute bronchitis. Symptoms include shortness of breath, weakness, fever, cou ...

Personal life

Avidar lost his right hand when he was learning how to use

grenades A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade g ...

, and was given the nickname "the amputee". He was sent to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

for treatment, where he met the future Israeli children's book author and later wife

Yemima Avidar-Tchernovitz Yemima Avidar-Tchernovitz (; October 8, 1909 – March 20, 1998) was an Israeli author whose works became classics of modern Hebrew children's literature. Born in Vilna, Lithuania, in 1909, she arrived in Palestine in 1921, at the age of 12. A te ...

, who at the time was studying at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

. He received a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

Russian studies Russian studies is an interdisciplinary field crossing politics of Russia, politics, history of Russia, history, Culture of Russia, culture, economy of Russia, economics, and languages of Russia, languages of Russia and its neighborhood, often gr ...

from the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

Works

* ''BaDerekh l'Tsahal'', 1971 *

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Avidar, Yosef 1906 births 1995 deaths Haganah members People from Kremenets Israeli amputees 20th-century Israeli politicians Ukrainian emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Respiratory disease deaths in Israel Infectious disease deaths in Israel Deaths from respiratory tract infection Israeli military personnel of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War Ambassadors of Israel to the Soviet Union Ambassadors of Israel to Argentina Quartermasters Israeli politicians with disabilities Immigrants of the Fifth Aliyah