First-hand Accounts from the Jewish Brigade
Hear, in their own words, the soldiers' accounts. Where available, a link is provided to a short biography.
The Shlomo Shamir, Yitzchak Moore, and Haim Einav interviews are outtakes from Is Jerusalem Burning? Myth, Memory and the Battle of Latrun. The others are outtakes from In Our Own Hands: The Hidden Story of the Jewish Brigade in World War II.
This digitized collection is only a small sample of the dozens of interviews available on VHS and beta in our archive. See the full inventory in this PDF:
We are seeking funding to further the digitization of the collection. If you have comments or questions, please email the History, Philosophy, and Newspaper Library.
PLEASE NOTE: Excerpts from, and access to, these materials are provided for scholarly, non-commercial purposes only. Copying and/or distribution without authorization is strictly prohibited. To purchase copies of Chuck Olin's films or obtain permission to reproduce content from this collection, please contact Chuck Olin Films.
Click on any of the thumbnails to view the video.
Hanoch Bartov
Bartov served as medic for the Brigade, and later wrote a fictionalized account of his story.
Oly Givon
Givon was chosen to go to the Palmach because he had been trained in the Haganah. In the Palmach he began as the first commander of the women's group.
Johanan Peltz
Though he had been shot in the leg before the war, Peltz rose to 2nd Lieutenant in the British Army during World War II.
Shlomo Shamir
At 28 years old, Shamir commanded the Jewish Brigade.
Yitzchak Moore
Moore worked in the British Army during World War II. In May, 1948 he joined the engineer corps of the newly formed Israeli army. A few days later he was ordered to join the seventh brigade to go to Latrun to try to open the road to Jerusalem.
Haim Einav
Einav was part of the seventh brigade during the Battle at Latrun. He considers his biggest accomplishment during the war was going up to Hill 314 and saving most of the soldiers there.