Golomb, Eliyahu

(1893–1945)

   Haganah leader. Golomb came to Palestine from Russia at the age of sixteen, and after graduating from the Herzliah Gymnazia in Tel Aviv, went to work in Degania. In 1918 he joined the Jewish Legion in the British army, and encouraged others to do so in the hope that the legion would be the nucleus of Jewish self-defence in Palestine. He came out of it in 1920 with the rank of corporal and was one of a small Histadrut committee that planned the Haganah. In the years to come, his chief concern was with the development and training of the Haganah, and he came to be regarded as its father.

   The Arab rebellion that started in 1936 was a testing time for yishuv defence. Golomb and his colleagues maintained a policy of havlagah (self-restraint) which ruled out reprisals against the Arab civilian population. On the other hand, Golomb was responsible for the formation of plugot sadeh (field units) trained to seek out and engage the Arab bands. He helped develop this concept of active defence into the Palmach, the striking force of the Haganah. Golomb was associated with Arlosoroff in unsuccessful efforts to persuade JABOTINSKY and his Revisionist movement to rejoin the Zionist organization, and to bring the two dissident groups, Etzel and Lehi, under joint command with the Haganah.