History events
1664 — (24th of Iyar, 5424) In Lemberg and Cracow, Poland, anti-Jewish riots by students and peasants resulted in damages and death in both communities. In Lemberg, the cantor was killed during when the synagogue was attacked
1712 — (14th of Iyar, 5472) In Berlin, the cornerstone of the first public synagogue was laid in Heiderentergasse
1762 — (16 Iyar 5522) Small concessions were made for Jews in Russia regarding residence in St. Petersburg
1855 — (21th of Iyar, 5615) The new building for the Jews Hospital in New York, located on 28th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues, has been completed. The building which cost $35,000 is four stories high and has room for 150 patients
1881 — (10th of Iyar, 5641) Anti-Jewish riots broke out in Shpola and Ananyev, Russia.
1900 — (10th of Iyar, 5660) During the Konitz Affair, a blood libel in West Prussia, “the Staatsbürgerzeitung, the leading anti-Semitic organ of Berlin, said: ‘No one can help forming the impression that the organs of the government received orders to pursue the investigation in a manner calculated to spare the Jews’” even though the opposite was quite true as could be seen by the detectives and judges eagerly listened to “the most improbable statements implicating Jews, while Christian witnesses withheld important testimony.”
1916 — (6th of Iyar, 5676) The beginning of the exchange of secret notes between France and England regarding the division of the Turkish heritage in the Middle East in the form of direct annexation and the establishment of «spheres of influence» (Sykes-Picot Agreement). Iraq south of Mosul, Transjordan, several principalities of the Arabian Peninsula, Haifa, and Acre were assigned to Great Britain. France received Syria, Lebanon, Northern Iraq, and Southeastern Anatolia. An international (Anglo-French-Russian) administration was planned for Palestine. Russia was fulfilling its centuries-old dream — acquiring ownership of the Black Sea straits, the Bosporus, and the Dardanelles. However, in a year and a half, the Russian Empire would cease to exist.
1939 — (20th of Iyar, 5699) The Rothschild-Hadassah University Hospital and Medical Center was opened on Mt. Scopus
1939 — (20 Iyar 5699) The Egged bus cooperative opened a line from Haifa to Tiberias via Afula.
1942 — (22 Iyar 5702) Shoah. 450 Jews were shot in Vinkovtsy, 588 Jews in Zinkov (Khmelnytsky region), and several hundred in Ivano-Frankivsk.
1946 — (8 Iyar 5706) Efim Raize published the first list of Jews – Heroes of the Soviet Union in the newspaper «Der Eynikayt.» It included 101 individuals. For this, E. Raize was sentenced to 10 years in a labor camp. An employee of the award department of Glavpur, who provided the lists, was sentenced to 25 years in a strict regime labor camp.
1948 — (30 Nisan 5708) War of Independence. A unit of the «Alexandroni» brigade began a local operation «Yuval» to capture the village of Kafr Kara in the Wadi Ara valley. The fighters captured part of the village but had to retreat, losing 10 men killed.
1956 — (28 Iyar 5716) The opposition in the Knesset expressed a vote of no confidence in the government due to its decision not to close the industrial exhibition held in Haifa on Saturday.
1966 — (19 Iyar 5726) The government reported to the Knesset on the state of unemployment. The national unemployment rate was 3.3%, while in some development towns, 20% of residents were unemployed.
1968 — (11 Iyar 5728) War of Attrition. Three soldiers were killed under fire in northern Sinai. An armored personnel carrier detonated on a mine on the Yarmouk River.
1972 — (25th of Iyar, 5732) One day after Sabena Flight 571 was hijacked by four terrorists from Black September demanding the release of 315 convicted Palestinian terrorists in exchange for the passengers, a rescue mission was mounted. A group of commandos led by Ehud Barak that included Benjamin Netanyahu took back control of the plane, free the passengers with the loss of only one life, not counting the two dead terrorists
2001 — (16th of Iyar, 5761) The bodies of two Israeli teenagers – Yaakov “Koby Mandell and Yosef Ishran — who had been kidnapped yesterday were found in a cave in the Judean Desert near their home which was covered with the boy’s blood “reportedly smeared by their killers” who had bound them, stabbed them and beaten them to death with rocks
2002 — (27 Iyar 5762) Militants hiding in the Church of the Nativity were released (see April 2, 2002). A few days later, 13 of them went to Europe, 26 went to Gaza, and the rest were sent home. Hamas leader Sheikh Yassin stated that terrorist attacks against Israel would continue.
2013 — (29 Iyar 5773) Construction began on an international airport near Eilat.
2023 — (18 Iyar 5783) In response to the shelling of Sderot on May 2, resulting in several rockets hitting residential areas and 12 people injured, the IDF launched an anti-terrorist operation «Shield and Arrow» in the Gaza Strip, targeting leaders of the “Islamic Jihad” militants. The operation ended on May 13. During these days, 1,469 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory. The IDF attacked 422 “Islamic Jihad” targets and eliminated six of its senior commanders
People
1317 — (22 Iyar 5077) Infante Don Pedro ordered payment of 15,000 maravedis to Judah Abarbanel for delivered clothing; 30,000 maravedis as a personal debt, while asking Judah to release him from paying the remainder. Judah Abarbanel, one of the first Abarbanel family members, served as a customs manager in Seville and was honored among the local nobility
1775 — (9th of Iyar, 5535) Birthdate of Moses Philippson the Jewish writer, teacher, translator and publisher who was related to 16th century Rabbi Joshua ben Joseph Hoseschel and who taught at the Jewish School in Dessau
1778 — (12th of Iyar, 5538) Chasidic Rabbi Samuel Shmelke Horowitz, author of Divrei Shmuel, passed away today
1882 — (20 Iyar 5642) Yossele Rosenblatt was born – an American synagogue cantor and composer of liturgical music. He died on June 19, 1933.
1945 — Soviet spy Lev Manevich died in the Mauthausen concentration camp.
1952 — V. Reznikov was born – a composer. He died on February 25, 1992.
1930 — (11th of Iyar, 5690) Birthdate of Mordechai “Motta” Gur who commanded the division that reunited Jerusalem in 1967 and served 10th Chief of Staff of the IDF.
1998 — (13 Iyar 5758) At the Eurovision Song Contest in Birmingham, Israel’s representative Dana International won with the song «Diva,» who had previously been a man