Gross, Eliezer (Leius)

Son of Nechama and Avraham, he was born on the 26th of Sivan, June 8, 1915, in the city of Bahtor-Kessen, Hungary. When he was five years old, his father died. When it became time for Eliezer to enlist in the the Hungarian army, he decided to emigrate to Israel illegally, since one who is being drafted is unable to obtain an exit permit. In August 1939 he finally landed in Haifa and was registered by the British as an “illegal immigrant.” With the declaration of the State of Israel, Eliezer enlisted in the army and devotedly filled the role of paramedic. On the 3rd of Tamuz, July 10, 1948, Eliezer was wounded in the leg in the battle of Birwa, east of Acre (today Achihud), and his friends carried him about 60 meters until he was hit by an enemy shell that killed him. He was survived by his wife, a son and a daughter. After five weeks his body was found and he was laid to rest at the military cemetery in Nahariya on the fifteenth of Av, 5708 (August 20, 1948).