Brothers for Resistance and Rescue 1 - CENDO

LIST OF ZIONIST YOUTH MOVEMENTS
AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT TOOK PART IN THE
UNDERGROUND WORK AND ACTIVITIES IN HUNGARY
“Ihud Mapai”
“Mapai”, the workers’ party in Eretz Israel, was founded in Palestine in 1930 as the merger of two
parties: “Hapoel Hatzair” and “Ahdut Avoda”. The word ‘ihud’ was added to the name of the party
operating abroad. This was a party with a Zionist-socialist ideology. The central figure of the party
in Hungary at the beginning, in 1933, was Dr. Dénes Béla, a doctor, one of the prominent activists
of the Jewish community in Budapest and a member of the Hungarian Zionist Association’s
leadership. Other prominent activists were Hillel Danzig, a journalist who visited Eretz Israel in
1939, Kiss Katalin, Weiler Ferenc and Dr. Beneschofsky Ilona. The party was active in Hungary
until 1949.
“Beitar” (Yosef Trumpeldor’s Alliance)
“Beitar” was an activist-Zionist youth movement with a right-wing ideology. It was founded in 1923,
in Riga, Latvia, as a youth movement of the Revisionist Zionist Organization, which in 1935
became the New Zionist Organization. The movement spread in Poland and in other European
countries and its leader was Ze’ev Jabotinsky. The movement was based on three principles: the
establishment of a Jewish State, active self-defense and halutziut, i.e. to be the leaders of the way.
The essence of Zionism was perceived in raising 'one flag', i.e. the national flag, and “Beitar”
rejected socialist Zionism, which advocated both national and social flags. The movement was in
favor of a commanding hierarchy within its ranks. “Beitar” founded settlements in Eretz-Israel
(Palestine), was active in illegal aliya and in the opposition to the British Mandate in Eretz-Israel
(Palestine).
In Hungary “Beitar” was founded in the 30’s and, until it was expelled in 1935, it was a sports
association within the framework of the Zionist Organization. Afterwards it operated as an
independent youth movement and set up branches in Budapest and other towns in Hungary. The
education units of “Beitar” were called “Tzror” where there was one youth leader and ten to twelve
members. Youngsters could only join the movement after passing ‘new recruit tests’. Adult
members of the movement also did military training.
During the Second World War the movement dealt with self-defense and rescue. It set up five
bunkers in Budapest, one of which, in the city suburbs, was discovered by the fascists and its
members killed in a shooting battle. After the liberation (1945) “Beitar” developed many activities
among the youngsters and encouraged them to make aliya. The movement was in constant
confrontation with the Zionist institutions operating in Hungary. Sometimes they cooperated but
generally “Beitar” operated in a separate framework. In 1948, after a “Beitar” emissary
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