Yona was born in Jerusalem in 1924 to Moshe and Ruhama, the oldest among seven sons and two daughters, living in the Zikhron Yosef neighborhood. He studied in cheder, simultaneously studying secular subjects, but in a limited way. His father was a laborer, and in order to help support the large family, Yona began working at age twelve. At age 1939, he joined HaNoar HaOved, and in 1940 he became a Beitar member. He first joined the underground with the IZL in 1941 and Lehi in 1943.
His Lehi activities were wide-ranging, including reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering at army bases, while working as a truck-driver. He was caught by a police officer in the Atarot area while observing the base and beaten severely, resulting in a serious ear infection that required four surgeries.
In 1945, he was sent to Haifa to work for a Lehi supporter named Bronsky, and he continued working as a truck-driver in order to gather intelligence from army bases. He transferred arms to the Shefela area together with Yaakov “Yoram” Aharoni, and sometimes alone.
Late in 1945, as he was providing security for activists posting posters mourning the passing of Tzvi “Shmuel” Aharoni, he was arrested and tortured for ten nights by Inspector Martin. He was transferred from Haifa to Latrun in shackles, accompanied by two armored trucks. He was the head of one of the sheds there, participating in the digging of a second tunnel, which was discovered on 29 November 1947, apparently due to informers. He notified them that Eldad had been transferred to Dr. Troy’s clinic in Jerusalem, from which he was liberated by Lehi operatives. Yona was transferred to the government-run hospital for an additional operation, and he was kept in one room with Dov Gruner and Dr. Wolfgang von Weisl, who was then on a hunger strike.
In February of 1948, he was transferred to Atlit, together with the other Latrun prisoners, and released in May. He joined the Lehi members in Sheikh Munis, where they had come together to enlist in the IDF. However, he was rejected for health reasons. Nevertheless, he assisted in the Burma Road convoy and brought the first armored truck to the Lehi camp in Talbiyeh, Jerusalem.
Yona worked at the Broadcasting Authority, retiring in 1989 as the transportation director. While working, he spent some time irregularly attending evening classes, in order to complete his education.
In 1952, he married Esther Doron. They lived in Jerusalem and had four children and numerous grandchildren.