Militaryאליעזר בן-עמי

Eliezer Ben Ami

Eliezer Ben Ami was a member of the Lehi underground who prepared the orange grenade for Moshe Barazani and Meir Feinstein, and later an IDF officer.

1923 to 2023The orange grenadeLehi underground activityIDF engineering and weapons development

Born: 1 November 1923, Jerusalem
Died: 15 August 2023, Hod HaSharon
Rank: Sgan Aluf

Eliezer Ben Ami was born in 1923 in Jerusalem

Eliezer Ben Ami, born Hasin, was born in Jerusalem on November 1, 1923. His parents came from Ukraine and bought a farm and an orchard in Rehovot. He grew up in Rehovot and Tel Aviv and belonged to the local Maccabi and Betar groups.

He joined the Irgun at the end of 1939 and moved to Lehi in 1940, where his code name was Yehezkel. He worked as a courier and storekeeper and hid Lehi fugitives in his parents' barn. In 1942 he went fully underground to develop weapons, and on April 8, 1943 he was arrested and sentenced to 6 years in prison.

In prison he planned escapes. He filled 2 emptied oranges with explosives and passed them to Moshe Barazani and Meir Feinstein, who had been sentenced to hang. The 2 men used them to kill themselves about 3 hours before the execution.

Released on February 8, 1948, he joined the IDF on May 31, 1948 and served until September 1969. He then worked as an engineer in development, research and machine building, and went independent in 1994. After his wife died in 1992 he took up painting and sculpture, and he lectured for Lehi veterans' groups. He died on August 15, 2023.

Eliezer Ben Ami's life in 8 milestones

1923
Born in Jerusalem.
1939
Joined the Irgun.
1940
Left the Irgun and joined Lehi.
1943
Arrested and sentenced to 6 years in prison.
1948
Released from prison, married Drora Giladi and enlisted in the IDF.
1951
Completed the engineering officers course with honors.
1969
Left the IDF as a lieutenant colonel.
2023
Died.

Eliezer Ben Ami served in Combat Engineering Corps

He served in the IDF from 1948 to 1969, first in the 8th Brigade and then in the Engineering and Ordnance Corps, in roles including bomb disposal, commander of Battalion 276 and head of the NBC branch. He retired as a lieutenant colonel.

Combat Engineering Corps