Hannah Senesh: An Israeli Hero
by Jenna Orvitz, High School Intern
Hannah Senesh was an Israeli Hero. Hannah was born in Hungary in 1921 to a Hungarian Jewish family. Upon facing antisemitism during high school, she discovered her passion for Zionism. She learned Hebrew and joined a youth group with the hope to go to Israel. She achieved this goal in 1939 when she moved to Israel, while it was still under the British Mandate. She lived at Sedot Yam Kibbutz in Caeserea. She volunteered to join a Paratrooper unit in the British army and went into Hungary in 1944 to help rescue Jews. Soon after arriving in Hungary, she was arrested and tortured. The Hungarian authorities tortured Hannah to try to get information about the Allies, but she refused to give in. The Hungarians went a step further and brought her mother to Hannah and tortured her, too, but they both would not give in. In early November 1944, Hannah was convicted as a spy and was sentenced to death on November 7th, 1944.
During her lifetime, Hannah wrote many songs and poems including her famous song, Eli Eli, which was Hannah’s reaction when she arrived in Israel. The lyrics of the song are “My God, My God. May these things never end: The sand and the sea. The rustle of the water. The lightning in the sky. Man’s prayer.“ Hannah was so happy to finally reach the place that she had so long wanted to be. Many years after WW2 ended Hannah’s body was eventually moved and buried on Mount Herzl in Israel. Hannah Senesh is an inspiration to all Zionists around the world. She left behind a legacy that inspires Jews around the world to do whatever they can to try to go to Israel and to help others when they are in need. She risked her life to try to help save Hungarian Jews and she showed that it is important to stand up for what we believe in.
