Born in 1924 in Kaunas, Lithuania, he was an active member of the sports youth movement “Young Makkabist” in his home city. After WWII he became an activist in an underground students’ organization and gathered around him a group of youth intending to go to Eretz Israel. Arrested in 1947 on charges of the Zionist activity and attempting to flee the Soviet Union, he was sentenced by OSO to 7 years imprisonment in the Gulag plus 12 years in exile. Released ahead of schedule in 1964, he was still not granted a visa till 1971 when he managed to get to Israel.
