Brothers for Resistance and Rescue 1 - CENDO

Goldstein Peretz
Goldstein Ferenc
Born in Lugos (Lugoj) on 14.7.1923
Paratrooper
Perished in Germany in 1944
In 1933 Peretz’s family moved to Kolozsvár. In 1937 Peretz joined the
“Habonim” movement (Scout halutz youth).
In 1941 he made aliya with Aliyat Hanoar and lived in Kibbutz Afikim for
two years. Peretz then joined Kibbutz Kinneret – Kibbutz Ma’agan as a
member of the Transylvanian garin. At the end of 1942 he was enlisted in
the Palmah and at the beginning of 1943 he volunteered for a
paratrooper mission to occupied Europe. Both at home and in Cairo
Peretz went through the selection, practice and training stages.
On 15.4.1944 Peretz, Joel Palgi and two British military men jumped over
North Yugoslavia, an area that was under the control of Tito’s partisans.
On 6.5.1944 he met with his fellow paratroopers from Eretz Israel, Yona
Rozen, Hana Szenes, Reuven Daphni and Aba Berdichev who also
parachuted on Yugoslav land. Together they arrived at the headquarters
of the sixth corps of the partisans in the Papok Mountains. On 19.6.1944
Peretz and Joel Palgi crossed the Drava River and arrived in Hungary.
From the day they crossed the border, the Hungarian counter-espionage
followed them. Joel and Peretz reached Budapest within a day. First they
met Dr. Israel Kasztner, one of the leaders of the Relief and Rescue
Committee, and then members of the Zionist youth movements
underground.
They were both arrested by the Hungarian police: Joel Palgi on June 27 th
and Peretz on July 1 st . The Germans demanded that the Hungarians
hand over the two paratroopers to them and on September 11 th Peretz
was taken to the Gestapo prison in Fø Street. From there he was
transferred to the central military prison on Margit Boulevard in Budapest
where Joel Palgi and Hana Szenes were also being detained.
Peretz was interrogated and tortured but did neither reveal any secret
information nor the objective of his mission.
As the Red Army was approaching the Hungarian capital, Peretz was
transferred to the Komárom prison and from there, on 8.12.1944, to the
German city of Oranienburg, north of Berlin. He did forced labor in the
Heinkel factory that built planes.
Joel Palgi managed to jump off the train and to return to Budapest where
he found refuge with members of the underground until the liberation.
The plane factory was bombarded by the allied forces and Peretz was
probably killed.
Brothers for Resistance and Rescue 112