Abraham Hartzfeld, the “father” of the Jewish settlements in Palestine and in Israel, died today at the age of 85. Mr. Hartzfeld, who was a Mapai member of the Knesset in the first five Knessets. was born in the Ukraine. When he was 18 he joined the Zionist-Socialist movement for which he was arrested for two years and then sentenced again to life imprisonment and sent to Siberia.
Three years later he escaped and reached Palestine in 1914. He soon became a leading figure among Jewish agricultural laborers, founding the Agricultural Laborers Fund and becoming prominent as an organizer of new settlements. There was no new settlement that was established without Mr. Hartzfeld being present, encouraging, helping and singing. He was a delegate to many Zionist congresses.
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