NAME: Mizrahi, Aharon

LEHI ALIAS: Gabbai

DATE OF BIRTH: September 7, 1929

DATE FALLEN: September 13, 1948

Aharon was born on September 7,1929, in Jerusalem to Moshe and Miriam. He finished school and went to work in plating with nickel, chrome and silver, and for a hobby, he played sports. Together with some of his neighbors, he founded the Young Watch. He was an excellent instructor who educated youths with a kibbutz spirit.

His great love for the sea brought him to the Shefela and to seamanship. The young, passionate boy was exposed to underground literature, which spoke to him, and he joined Lehi. He took courses in firearms, showing his ability in daring actions. Aharon also trained others.

Aharon had a great musical ability. He loved to sing and to play the harmonica. He also wrote songs. In one his songs, dedicated to his mother, which his friends liked a lot: “Mother, when I leave, don’t cry, I say/ To the homeland I have a debt to repay.” He was certain that a bullet would not hit him, and if so, only “on the other side of the Jordan,” as he told his good friend.

When the War of Independence began, he enlisted in the IDF with other Lehi members. He joined Company A of the combat Battalion 89 in the 8th Brigade. The company commander was Yaakov “Blond Dov” Granek. Aharon fought in Operation Danny and at Yehudia, Wilhelma, Lod, Ramleh and Beit Naballah. However, his love for the sea remained, and so when there was a letup in the fighting, he asked for and received authorization to serve in the Navy.

However, he never had the chance. His company was based in Ben Shemen, and it was training at the Lod Airport. Beyond their official maneuvers, a number of the boys strung a cable over the control towers so they could slide down it on an “Omega,” but it was not set high enough. This meant that the cable was not taut but bent in the middle. The sporting Aharon decided to slide down the cable, but as he tried to tighten his grip on the “Omega,” he slipped and fell, critically injured. He soon died of his wounds.

Aharon passed away on September 13, 1948, soon after his nineteenth birthday. He was buried the same day in the military cemetery at Nahalat Yitzhak in Tel Aviv.