Born in 1947 in Tashkent to a traditionally observant family, he was forced to face the phenomenon of anti-Semitism both at school and in the army. This led to his joining the underground Zionist movement in Leningrad and working for Jewish freedom to emigrate to Israel. He was arrested several times but not tried. However, after the last arrest in 1972, he was charged with Zionist activity and sentenced to 2.5 years imprisonment in the Gulag. Released in 1975, he left for Israel several months later.
