Meir Zorea
Encyclopedia
Meir "Zarro" Zorea MC
on 14 March 1923, died 24 June 1995) was a general
in the Israel Defense Forces
(IDF) and later a member of the Knesset
. He earned distinction through his combat actions in World War II
and in the Israeli War of Independence
. He was a founder of Dash
, an initially successful but short-lived centrist party.
, Bessarabia
(then part of the Kingdom of Romania
, now in Moldova
) in 1923, and moved to Mandate Palestine in 1925. He was a teenager at the outbreak of World War II
, but in 1942 joined the Jewish Brigade
, a temporary military element of the British military. During late winter in 1945, Zorea's Brigade took part in combat against the German army
at the Senio River Valley (near Bologna
, Italy
). After two difficult months, the brigade emerged from the engagement battered, yet victorious. Then a second lieutenant, Zorea was awarded the British Military Cross
for leading his men through intense fire. Eventually, Zorea attained the rank of captain
before the brigade was dissolved in 1946.
The Jewish Brigade, largely used as a front for Haganah
resistance operations, provided opportunities for arms smuggling to Jewish resistance groups in the British Mandate of Palestine, directing European Jewish Holocaust
survivors in emigration to Palestine (see Beriha), and executing Nazi
officials and military officers. Zorea took part in all of these activities. Regarding emigration to Palestine, Zorea remarked:
To facilitate execution of Nazis, Jewish Brigade members would traverse post-war Europe in bands of three and four. Zorea explained:
(IDF) in anticipation of the impending War of Independence
. At the time, former brigade members were among the few Israelis with military background. During the 1948 war, Zorea served as a battalion commander. Later, Zorea served on the General Staff as the head of the training department
. He also served as Commander of the IDF Officer School
.
Zorea retired from the army in 1953, and he was later recommissioned in 1956. He went on to positions as Deputy Commander and later Commander of Israel's tank corps, and Director of Operations. At the time, Zorea was considered a candidate for eventual appointment as Chief of General Staff, the highest position in the IDF. In 1959, after the Night of the Ducks
scandal that brought Israel to domestic and foreign crisis, Zorea was removed from his position as Director of Operations. He was reassigned as Commander of Northern Command, succeeding Yitzhak Rabin
, who in turn replaced Zorea as the new Director of Operations.
In 1962, Zorea retired from the IDF as a Major-General. He participated in the Israeli capture of Adolf Eichmann
, who stood trial and was later executed. Later on, during the 1967 Six-Day War
, Zorea led his tank corps into the Sinai Peninsula
to capture Sharm el-Sheikh
from Egypt
ian forces. In the 1980s, Zorea was involved in the investigation of the Kav 300 affair
, wherein some Israeli soldiers were suspected of killing two captured Arab
terrorists.
Ma'agan Michael
. He also served as a police cadet.
Party, Zorea joined with Professor Yigael Yadin
in 1976 to form Dash
, a centrist party formed by an alliance of former members of the Alignment
and Likud
parties. One of the party's stated goals was to introduce a national constitution into Israeli Law.
Zorea was elected to the Knesset
in the 1977 elections
in which Dash won 15 seats (making it the third largest in the Knesset), and the party joined Menachem Begin
's coalition government. While serving in the Knesset, Zorea became a member of the House Committee, the Finance Committee, and the Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee. However, the party began to disintegrate and Zorea resigned from the Knesset in 1978, less than a year after entering it. In 1984 he headed a committee of inquiry into the Bus 300 Affair
. He died in 1995, at the age of 72.
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
on 14 March 1923, died 24 June 1995) was a general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
in the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
(IDF) and later a member of the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
. He earned distinction through his combat actions in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and in the Israeli War of Independence
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
. He was a founder of Dash
Democratic Movement for Change
The Democratic Movement for Change , commonly known by its Hebrew acronym Dash was a short-lived and initially highly-successful centrist political party in Israel...
, an initially successful but short-lived centrist party.
Early life
Zorea was born in ChişinăuChisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
, Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
(then part of the Kingdom of Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, now in Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
) in 1923, and moved to Mandate Palestine in 1925. He was a teenager at the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, but in 1942 joined the Jewish Brigade
Jewish Brigade
The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group was a military formation of the British Army that served in Europe during the Second World War. The brigade was formed in late 1944, and its personnel fought the Germans in Italy...
, a temporary military element of the British military. During late winter in 1945, Zorea's Brigade took part in combat against the German army
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
at the Senio River Valley (near Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
). After two difficult months, the brigade emerged from the engagement battered, yet victorious. Then a second lieutenant, Zorea was awarded the British Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
for leading his men through intense fire. Eventually, Zorea attained the rank of captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
before the brigade was dissolved in 1946.
The Jewish Brigade, largely used as a front for Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
resistance operations, provided opportunities for arms smuggling to Jewish resistance groups in the British Mandate of Palestine, directing European Jewish Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
survivors in emigration to Palestine (see Beriha), and executing Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
officials and military officers. Zorea took part in all of these activities. Regarding emigration to Palestine, Zorea remarked:
- We had a net over the whole of Europe, which was then about five million people of all nations and denominations who were moving from place to place, and we directed our streams toward Palestine.
To facilitate execution of Nazis, Jewish Brigade members would traverse post-war Europe in bands of three and four. Zorea explained:
- We only eliminated those directly involved in the slaughter of Jews. At first we put a bullet through their heads. Then we strangled them. With our bare hands. We never said anything before we killed them. Not why or who we were. We just killed them like you kill a bug.
Participation in the Israeli military
Dozens of former Jewish Brigade members were called upon to lead the Israel Defense ForcesIsrael Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
(IDF) in anticipation of the impending War of Independence
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
. At the time, former brigade members were among the few Israelis with military background. During the 1948 war, Zorea served as a battalion commander. Later, Zorea served on the General Staff as the head of the training department
Bahad
Bahad is a military training base in the Israel Defense Forces. Each Bahad deals with a certain field, such as law enforcement or logistics. Generally, each Bahad belongs to a certain corps and conducts all courses required by the corps in question...
. He also served as Commander of the IDF Officer School
Bahad
Bahad is a military training base in the Israel Defense Forces. Each Bahad deals with a certain field, such as law enforcement or logistics. Generally, each Bahad belongs to a certain corps and conducts all courses required by the corps in question...
.
Zorea retired from the army in 1953, and he was later recommissioned in 1956. He went on to positions as Deputy Commander and later Commander of Israel's tank corps, and Director of Operations. At the time, Zorea was considered a candidate for eventual appointment as Chief of General Staff, the highest position in the IDF. In 1959, after the Night of the Ducks
Night of the Ducks
The "Night of the Ducks" is the term used to describe a civilian fiasco by the Israel Defense Forces that occurred on April 1, 1959.Traditionally, Israel conducted regular call-up exercises for its reserve troops by public radio. Units were given code words, which, if broadcast over the radio,...
scandal that brought Israel to domestic and foreign crisis, Zorea was removed from his position as Director of Operations. He was reassigned as Commander of Northern Command, succeeding Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin
' was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77 and 1992 until his assassination in 1995....
, who in turn replaced Zorea as the new Director of Operations.
In 1962, Zorea retired from the IDF as a Major-General. He participated in the Israeli capture of Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Otto Eichmann was a German Nazi and SS-Obersturmbannführer and one of the major organizers of the Holocaust...
, who stood trial and was later executed. Later on, during the 1967 Six-Day War
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
, Zorea led his tank corps into the Sinai Peninsula
Sinai Peninsula
The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa, effectively serving as a land bridge between two...
to capture Sharm el-Sheikh
Sharm el-Sheikh
Sharm el-Sheikh is a city situated on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, in South Sinai Governorate, Egypt, on the coastal strip along the Red Sea. Its population is approximately 35,000...
from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian forces. In the 1980s, Zorea was involved in the investigation of the Kav 300 affair
Kav 300 affair
The Bus 300 affair , also known as Kav 300 affair, was an affair in which Shin Bet members executed two Palestinian bus hijackers, immediately after the hostage crises incident ended and the two militants were captured....
, wherein some Israeli soldiers were suspected of killing two captured Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
terrorists.
Civilian activity
As a civilian, Zorea was a member of the Israeli Scouts Movement and a founder of kibbutzKibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
Ma'agan Michael
Ma'agan Michael
Ma'agan Michael is a kibbutz in Israel. It is currently the largest kibbutz in the country, with a population of over 1,400 residents , and falls under the jurisdiction of Hof HaCarmel Regional Council.-Geography:...
. He also served as a police cadet.
Political activity
Zorea remained active in service of the State of Israel well after retirement from the military. From 1973 to 1974, Zorea served as Soldiers' Ombudsman. From 1976-1977, he served as Director of the Israel Lands Authority. While originally a member of the left-wing MapamMapam
Mapam was a political party in Israel and is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Meretz party.-History:Mapam was formed by a January 1948 merger of the Hashomer Hatzair Workers Party and Ahdut HaAvoda Poale Zion Movement. The party was originally Marxist-Zionist in its outlook and represented...
Party, Zorea joined with Professor Yigael Yadin
Yigael Yadin
Yigael Yadin on 21 March 1917, died 28 June 1984) was an Israeli archeologist, politician, and the second Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces.-Early life and military career:...
in 1976 to form Dash
Democratic Movement for Change
The Democratic Movement for Change , commonly known by its Hebrew acronym Dash was a short-lived and initially highly-successful centrist political party in Israel...
, a centrist party formed by an alliance of former members of the Alignment
Alignment (political party)
The Alignment was an alliance of the major left-wing parties in Israel between the 1960s and 1990s. It was established in 1965 as an alliance of Mapai and Ahdut HaAvoda but was dissolved three years later when the two parties and Rafi formally merged into the Israeli Labor Party...
and Likud
Likud
Likud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
parties. One of the party's stated goals was to introduce a national constitution into Israeli Law.
Zorea was elected to the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
in the 1977 elections
Israeli legislative election, 1977
The Elections for the ninth Knesset were held on 17 May 1977. For the first time in Israeli political history, the right-wing, led by Likud, won the election, ending almost 30 years of rule by the left-wing Alignment and its predecessor, Mapai...
in which Dash won 15 seats (making it the third largest in the Knesset), and the party joined Menachem Begin
Menachem Begin
' was a politician, founder of Likud and the sixth Prime Minister of the State of Israel. Before independence, he was the leader of the Zionist militant group Irgun, the Revisionist breakaway from the larger Jewish paramilitary organization Haganah. He proclaimed a revolt, on 1 February 1944,...
's coalition government. While serving in the Knesset, Zorea became a member of the House Committee, the Finance Committee, and the Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee. However, the party began to disintegrate and Zorea resigned from the Knesset in 1978, less than a year after entering it. In 1984 he headed a committee of inquiry into the Bus 300 Affair
Kav 300 affair
The Bus 300 affair , also known as Kav 300 affair, was an affair in which Shin Bet members executed two Palestinian bus hijackers, immediately after the hostage crises incident ended and the two militants were captured....
. He died in 1995, at the age of 72.