Benjamin Levin (partisan)
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For other people named Benjamin Levin, see Benjamin Levin (disambiguation)
Benjamin Levin (April 11, 1927 – April 13, 2020) was the last surviving member of the Israeli “Avengers” partisan group. He was responsible for derailing and bombing many Nazi trains. A longstanding warrant for his arrest in Lithuania was still in place seventy years after the war. After the War, he joined the Irgun party, and was one of the surviving passengers of the Altalena ship.
Early years
Levin was born in Vilna, Lithuania. He was the son of Chaim Levin, a local merchant and gourmet food shop owner.[1] Levin was 14 when he and his older brother joined the “Avengers” ("Nokmim") partisan group of Abba Kovner.[2]
Avengers Partisan Activities
During the war, Levin impaired railways, destroyed train cars, cut communication wires, bombed bridges, and injured and killed Nazis. His small stature allowed him to hide, spy, scout, and escape detection easily.[3]
He and other Avengers joined the Red Army when it liberated Vilnius in 1944.[4] His parents survived the Holocaust but were later killed with one of their sons by neighbors when they tried to reclaim their home.[5] Even 70 years after the end of WWII, there was an outstanding warrant for Levin’s arrest in Lithuania. [6] He submitted his testimony of the Holocaust to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.[7] He was interviewed by Steven Spielberg who dubbed Levin "the Forrest Gump of Jewish History."[2]
Irgun Party
He was imprisoned by the NKVD for illegal resistance activities related to his pre-State Israel activities and involvement in the Irgun party. He spent a year in the Siberian gulag. After his release he hitchhiked to Italy where he rejoined the party.[8] He then immigrated to Israel and fled the burning Altalena ship.[9]
Personal life
In 1967, Levin moved to New York with his family and became a mechanic for the MTA, a gas-station owner and private business owner.[10] He was married to Sara, a Hungarian Holocaust survivor. They had two children. Levin died on April 13, 2020 from coronavirus.[11]
References
- ^ Miller, Dr Yvette Alt. "Jewish Partisan Hero Dies of Coronavirus". aishcom. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ a b Lebovic, Matt. "'Avenger' Benjamin Levin, 'Forrest Gump of Jewish history,' succumbs to COVID-19". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ "COVID-19 defeats the last of the Partisan Avengers". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ "Benjamin Levin". encyclopedia.ushmm.org. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ Vincent, Isabel (2020-04-18). "Jewish partisan who fought the Nazis loses his battle with coronavirus". New York Post. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ "Stuyvesant Blog". 206.189.196.188. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ "USC Shoah Foundation Institute testimony of Benjamin Levin - Collections Search - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum". collections.ushmm.org. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ Admin, Content (2016-12-07). "Benjamin Levin". Jewish Partisan Educational Foundation. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ Abelow, Avi (2020-04-19). "Final Surviving Nazi-Killer "Avenger" Dies in NY from Coronavirus". Israel Unwired. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ Vincent, Isabel (2017-04-09). "World War II 'Avenger' reveals his heroic Nazi-killing past". New York Post. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ "Jewish Nazi-fighter loses battle with the coronavirus". ABC 14 News. 2020-04-18. Retrieved 2020-04-21.