A memorial plaque honoring Israel's sixth prime minister, Menachem Begin, was unveiled in Truskavets
Eighty-seven years after the wedding of Menachem Begin and Aliza Arnold, two granddaughters and a great-granddaughter of the former Prime Minister of Israel visited Truskavets in the Lviv region. At the historic “Eden” villa, which has miraculously survived, a memorial plaque was unveiled in honor of Menachem and Aliza Begin.
The ceremony took place with the support of the Menachem Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem and the Truskavets City Council.
The location of Menachem and Aliza Begin’s wedding was identified thanks to a single photograph from 1939, in which the young couple poses near the villa’s staircase.
The search for the historic building began about a year ago. Ukrainian historian Vasyl Rasevych and photographer Serhiy Khomyak joined the effort.
As a result, the researchers were able to identify the 1939 “Eden” villa as the modern “Refael” villa-hotel. In a symbolic coincidence, the building is currently owned by a businessman from Israel.
During their recent visit, Begin’s relatives posed for a photo in front of the very same staircase depicted in Menachem and Aliza’s wedding photo from May 1939.
Who Is Menachem Begin
Menachem Begin was born in 1913 in Brest to the family of the secretary of the local Jewish community. He joined the Zionist movement in his youth and later became one of its most prominent figures.
Begin studied law at the University of Warsaw, graduating in 1935 with a master’s degree in law. During World War II, he was subjected to Soviet repression and spent time in the Gulag. He later moved to Palestine via Iran.
During the struggle for the creation of Israel, Begin led the underground organization “Irgun,” which fought against the British Mandate regime in Palestine. After the establishment of the State of Israel, he became one of the leaders of the right-wing political camp and remained in the opposition for many years.
In 1977, Begin became Prime Minister of Israel, ushering in the first transfer of power in the country’s history to a right-wing coalition.
One of the most significant events of his political career was the signing of the Camp David Accords with Egypt. For the peace agreements reached with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1978, Begin was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Menachem Begin died in 1992 in Tel Aviv. His wife, Aliza, whom he married in Truskavets in 1939, died in 1982.
Truskavets became one of the happiest places for the young couple during a period that would soon give way to years of severe trials.
After their wedding, World War II began, and Menachem and Aliza Begin’s lives were marked by arrests, separation, the Gulag, and a difficult reunion via Iran, after which they reached Eretz Israel.
Menachem Begin later became one of the key figures in the struggle for Israel’s independence, spent decades in opposition, and in 1977 became the country’s prime minister following the right-wing bloc’s victory in the elections.
In 1978, Menachem Begin was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.
At the same time, the war and the Holocaust brought tragedy to his family: many of Begin’s relatives were murdered by the Nazis, particularly in the Drohobych and Brest ghettos.
Truskavets Mayor Andriy Kulchynskyi and Stepan Kulinyak, head of the Drohobych District Military Administration, took part in the unveiling of the memorial plaque.
The unveiling of the plaque marked a symbolic return of the Begin family to the place where one of the happiest chapters of his personal life began.
Even amid a full-scale war, Ukraine continues to honor the memory of Menachem Begin and the historical ties between Ukraine and Israel.
This was reported by journalist Shimon Briman.
Earlier, a memorial complex in the shape of a bonfire was unveiled at the “Tustan” State Historical and Cultural Reserve in honor of the fallen defenders of Ukraine whose lives were connected to this location.
In the capital, preparatory work has begun on creating a renovated memorial space on the Alley of the Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred. The site is located near the Chapel of Archangel Michael and the Martyrs of Novoukrainka.
