Isaac Schnitzer

Isaac, the son of Rosa and Fable, was born on Monday August Trf"o (12/08/1926) in Krakow. He was raised and educated in his native city.

Krakow, the third largest cities of Poland, was a spiritual and cultural center of the Jews of Europe. On the eve of World War II approximately 60,000 Jews
lived there.
With the September 1939 German invasion of Poland and Krakow approaching, many Jews fled east. The city was conquered on 6 September 1939 and immediately began a wave of persecution of the Jews, their property stolen, synagogues were burned and the Jews lost all their basic rights. Krakow became the capital of the GG (German government).

In May 1940, the deportations of Jews from Krakow surrounding towns begun . By March 1941, about 40,000 Jews were taken. In early March 1941 in a ghetto where some 18,000 Jews were concentrated. Many of them were forced to work in factories set up by the Germans.

In June 1942 the deportations to the death camps began. Thousands of Jews in the ghetto were deported to the Belzec extermination camp. Many others were shot in the streets during the deportation.

For liquidation in March 1943, the ghetto was divided into two parts: fit for work were transferred to Plaszow, and unfit shot to death in the streets. The last inhabitants of Cracow ghetto were sent to Auschwitz, where they were murdered in the gas chambers.

No details on the story of Isaac and his family in the Holocaust, but we know that everyone else perished.

Shortly after the war Isaac came to to Italy, and on June 19 1946 he was at the immigrant ship "Josiah Wedgwood." Ship, organized by Mossad and the Haganah ", carried on board 1257 illegal immigrants from 14 countries, including survivors, members of youth groups and former partisans. British spotted the ship at sea, attached to a destroyer and landed on the deck . The immigrants waved a banner at reads: "We survived Hitler, death is not foreign to us. Nothing will stop us from reaching the homeland for the Jews. Our blood in your hands if you shoot this unarmed ship." The British did not fire, but escorted the ship to come to Haifa, eight days after setting out. In Haifa the immigrant were downloaded from the ship and taken to a detention camp at Atlit.

Isaac and his Hashomer Hatzair friends "were released from the Atlit camp after two weeks. They joined the nucleus of a Tosia Altman - temporary settlement groups Kibbutz Ein Hamifratz.

the War of Independence
after the UN resolution on the November 1947 partition plan, nuclear sent reinforcements to Kibbutz Dan eastern upper Galilee.

Kibbutz Dan, communities "Wall and Tower" northern Hula Valley, as one of the ancient road connecting Syria to Israel. The strategic location made it an outpost settlement of the War of Independence (even years later). Beginning of the war were fellow graduates recruited Haganah ", then the spatial protection of the IDF. Isaac and his friends participated in military training and soon also carried the burden of defense. Responsibility is fulfilled his obligations at work and maintaining, tirelessly and sympathy.

On May (05/01/1948) morning a heavy attack began on Kibbutz Dan from Tel Al - Qadi (Tel Dan today). Grouping was unfortified and lacked communication trenches. Isaac rushed to his defense position. it was exposed to the enemy, and he was critically injured after a burst of gunfire. His friends carried him to the point of first aid, but he died from loss of blood.

He was Twenty-two when he fell. Isaac was buried in the cemetery of Kibbutz Dan. He was the first victim of the kibbutz during the War of Independence.

(This page is part of the national commemoration Yizkor, held by 'the Ministry of Defense)