Lissitzin, Vladimir (Volodya)

Son of Anana and Feodor, was born on August 17, 1922 in the city of Mozdok in the Caucasus, Russia, to Christian parents. From a foreign nation he came to Israel and stuck to it. As a tender child, about two years old, his parents left Russia and moved to Greece. In 1930 the family immigrated to Israel and spent the first three years in Migdal, where Volodya first visited the Hebrew school. In 1934 the family moved to Nesher, but Volodya continued to study there for only two years, because of his father’s lack of work. When he was 13, he began working in a British army camp as a locksmith to help the family. At the beginning of the Second World War, he joined the British Army and, with the establishment of the Jewish Brigade in Italy, served as a driver in Italy, France, Belgium and the Netherlands, and made great efforts to transfer Jewish refugees from Austria to camps in Italy. During his army service he received three medals. At the end of the war he worked as a driver in Nesher cement factory and devoted much of his time to sports. He was a member of the Hapoel sports association in Haifa and participated in many competitions in light athletics. Quite a few of Hapoel’s victories in Haifa were credited to wide-legged Volodya. At the outbreak of the War of Independence, when the first battles began in Palestine, Volodya was sent to a military camp near Nahariya for a course for sports coaches, but he asked that he be released from this position and wanted active duty. When he did not respond, he fled and returned to his friends in his previous unit in the Carmeli Brigade. He participated in the defense of the Nesher neighborhood and during the occupation of Haifa he remained with his division in the neighborhood to block the way to reinforcements of the Arab Legion. As the Arab convoy approached, with a number of armored vehicles, the platoon opened fire and the cars fell silent once. Suddenly, an Arab armored vehicle discovered several defenders nearby and began to attack them. Volodya crept into the armored car and fired a bullet into the turret. The armored vehicle stopped working and the class withdrew safely. In the campaign for the liberation of the Galilee, Volodya was also absent and took part in the battle of Ramat Yochanan, in the assault on Acre, in attacks on the Arab Legion in the ways and occupation of Balad al-Sheikh. After stopping the invasion of the Jordan Valley, our forces took the initiative and attacked the Gilboa area. After gaining control of the Gilboa ridge, the Carmeli Brigade attacked Jenin on the night of June 2-3 and occupied the outposts controlling the city. The Iraqi army, which had moved to Samaria after its failure in the Jordan Valley, concentrated its forces and counterattacked. On the 3rd of Iyar, 5708 (June 3, 1948), he was sent with his help to an extremist regime. The men began to retreat before the aid arrived and he was surprised by their retreat by machine-gun fire. This was how he stood at the outpost until his weapon was exhausted and he came to the aid of a wounded man and with him began to retreat. Before he reached a safe place, he was hit by a bullet and his last words were: “I am lost, try to arrive safely.” On the 20th of Av 5710 (3.8.1950) he was transferred to eternal rest in the military cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem.