Avigur (real name and surname: Meirov Saul) Shaul (1899, Dvinsk, Vitebsk Governorate – 1978, Tel Aviv, Israel) – Israeli military commander, statesman, and public figure.

Avigur Shaul spent his childhood in Mohyliv-Podilskyi. His family was Zionist-oriented, and although Russian was their spoken language, Avigur was taught Hebrew daily by his teachers. In 1912, he moved with his family to Palestine and enrolled in the Herzliya Gymnasium in Tel Aviv. From 1917, he was a member of Kibbutz Kinneret and actively participated in the Zionist socialist party “Ahdut HaAvoda,” later joining the “Mapai” party.

In 1920, alongside Joseph Trumpeldor, he took part in the heroic defence of Tel Hai in Upper Galilee. From 1922 until the establishment of the State of Israel (with brief interruptions), he was a member of the central command of “Haganah” underground paramilitary organisation (the precursor to the Israel Defense Forces). He was actively involved in procuring weapons for the Haganah in Europe, particularly intensifying his efforts on the eve of and during the Israeli War of Independence. He also played a key role in organising military industry.

From 1934, Avigur participated in numerous clandestine operations to repatriate Jews to Palestine, efforts that were strongly opposed by the British Mandate authorities. In 1937, he founded and led the organisation “Mossad LeAliyah Bet,” which was responsible for the illegal immigration of Jews. He is considered the “father” of Israeli intelligence services, having established the intelligence branch of the Haganah.

While in Iran in 1942, he established connections with Jewish refugees from Poland, Romania, and the Baltic states who were in border regions of Central Asia and helped organise their transfer to Palestine. Between 1943 and 1944, he frequently visited Iraq, where he was involved in the illegal repatriation of local Jews. He was closely connected to the underground organisation *“Bricha.”

In early 1946, he arrived in Paris, where he set up his headquarters and led a daring operation to smuggle over 100,000 Holocaust survivors to Palestine by sea.

On 12 July 1948, during the Israeli War of Independence, his only son, Gur, was killed in battle at Sajara (Ilaniya) in Lower Galilee at the age of 17. Following this tragedy, Avigur adopted the pseudonym “Avigur” (“Father of Gur”).

From late 1949, he became a close associate of David Ben-Gurion, continuing to oversee arms procurement for the Israel Defense Forces and contributing to the development of Israel’s military industry.

After the establishment of the State of Israel, immigration from Western countries became unrestricted. However, Jews were still unable to repatriate from Arab states, which did not recognise Israel, as well as from the USSR and Eastern European countries, where emigration was prohibited. To address this, responsibilities were divided: Arab countries fell under the jurisdiction of Mossad’s “Bitsur” unit, while a new organisation—“Nativ” (also known as “Lishkat HaKesher,” meaning “Liaison Bureau”)—was created for Eastern Bloc countries. From 1952 to 1970, Avigur headed Nativ and became a central figure in the struggle for Soviet and Eastern European Jews' right to repatriate to Israel.

Avigur played an active role in the publication of the comprehensive eight-volume History of the Haganah. He was also the author of With the Generation of the Haganah (Tel Aviv, 1962), which went through four Hebrew editions. A condensed Russian translation was published in the “Aliyah Library” series in 1976. This autobiographical work is dedicated to the memory of his son Gur and focuses on his comrades-in-arms.

In 1973, Avigur was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. That same year, he received the Israel Prize for his outstanding service to the state and its people. He was buried in Kibbutz Kinneret.

Between 1979 and 1987, the Centre for Research and Documentation of Eastern European Jewry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem held a series of seminars in his memory, focusing on issues related to the repatriation and integration of Soviet Jewish immigrants.

Works:

With the Generation of the Haganah. Jerusalem, 1976 (“Aliyah Library” series).

References:

Slivkina, E. Famous Jews from the Baltic States – Builders of the State of Israel. Jews in a Changing World: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference. Riga, 2000, pp. 179–204. Boaz, A. The Life Story of Shaul Avigur. Tel Aviv, 2001 (Hebrew). Slutsky, Y. Avigur (Meirov) Shaul Encyclopedia Judaica. Detroit; Jerusalem, 2007. Vol. 2, pp. 734–735.