October 25, 2021
After 73 Years: The Remains of an IDF Paratrooper Will Be Brought From the Czech Republic for Burial in Israel
A special delegation of the Families, Commemoration and Heritage Division of the Ministry of Defense and the IDF Personnel Division is in Prague, the Czech capital this week to bring the remains of IDF casualty Private Martin Davidovich to Israel. Davidovich was killed in a training accident in 1948, during a parachuting course of the Czech Brigade, and has since been buried in the new Jewish cemetery in Prague.
At the request of the family of the fallen, which was submitted to the Families, Commemoration and Heritage Division of the Ministry of Defense and the IDF, and with the approval of the Public Council for the Commemoration of the Soldier, and in coordination with IDF military attache in the Czech Republic, the Israeli embassy in the Czech Republic and the Czech Ministry of Defense, the operation was carefully planned for the past three years.
Today (Monday, October 25th, 2021) the remains of the late IDF casualty Private Martin Davidovich were exhumed and transferred to a coffin that will arrive in Israel on Wednesday. A monument that was brought by the Israeli delegation will be placed at the original burial site.
The head of the delegation is the Deputy Director General and Head of the Families, Commemoration and Heritage Division at the Ministry of Defense, Mr. Aryeh Mualem. The military commander is a former IDF attaché in Poland and the Czech Republic, Colonel Itai Brin. The delegation includes representatives of the Families, Commemoration and Heritage Department of the Ministry of Defense, representatives of the military rabbinate, members of the Department of Casualties in the Personnel Division and the head of a burial society in Prague, Rabbi Chaim Kochi.
The special delegation works in cooperation with the military attaches, the Israeli embassy in the Czech Republic and the Czech authorities. The composition of the delegation was reduced from what was originally planned, due to Covid-19 limitations in the Czech Republic.
On Wednesday, October 27th, an Israeli Air Force plane with soldiers and commanders from the Paratroopers Brigade will land at the International Airport in Prague. They will carry the coffin of the late Private Martin. At the Czech airport a military ceremony will take place led by the Head Military Cantor, LTC in reserve Shai Abramson, after which the delegation will fly back to Israel with the remains.
The next day, Private Davidovich will be laid to rest in the military cemetery on Mount Herzl, in the presence of his family members, who are coming especially from the United States to Israel. His funeral will take place at 16:00.
Minister of Defense, Mr. Benny Gantz: "Israel's eternal commitment to its fighters and fallen is reflected in this action. It is an action that is an integral part of the heritage and the values we carry with us as Israelis and Zionists, a heritage that we are committed to continuing and deepening."
Information on behalf of the reporter:
• The late Private Martin Davidovich, 21 years old at the time of his fall. Born on 13.12.1927, in the town of Zdenova in the Munkács County of Czechoslovakia, Martin studied in the "Cheder" of the town, participated in sports activities, enjoyed reading and joined a youth movement.
• After Nazi Germany took over Czechoslovakia, Martin was sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp. From there he was sent to the Mauthausen camp where he worked as a tailor. During World War II, his two sisters perished, and the late Martin survived along with his three other brothers and sister. After his release from the camp, Martin returned to his hometown and traveled with most of the Jews to the Sudetenland.
• The late Martin joined the "Zionist Youth" organization and due to its influence, volunteered for the "Czech Brigade" which included about 1300 Jewish and Christian volunteers from the Czech army who trained in the Czech Republic, and were trained for immigration to the country and joined the Haganah organization and the IDF.
• The training included raid and parachute training. The parachute training was carried out in complete secrecy in a parachuting facility in communist Czechoslovakia that was used by the Nazis during World War II. The course leadership consisted of both commanders in the Czech army and Israeli instructors who were members of the Haganah organization.
• On the thirteenth of Av, 18.08.1948, Martin fell in a training accident during a secret parachuting course on Czech soil, Martin was secretly buried due to the covert activity of the unit. The late Martin left behind three brothers – Eliezer (Lazer), and Naftali (Pepo), David-Zvi (Henyo) and sister - Chaya Bina (Blonka).
• In 2001, the late Martin was recognized as an IDF casualty. His name is immortalized in the paratroopers' monument near Tel Nof Air Force Base.
• The leading members of the delegation are Aryeh Mualem, Vice President and Head of the Families, Commemoration and Heritage Division, and COL Itai Brin, a former IDF attaché in Poland and the Czech Republic.
• A monument will be erected at the place of the current grave of the late Martin Davidovich, which was brought by the delegation from Israel.
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