Emil Grunzweig - Biography

Emil Grunzweig (December 1, 1947, in Cluj, Romania - February 10, 1983 in Jerusalem) was an Israeli teacher and peace activist affiliated with the Peace Now movement. He became an icon of the Israeli left after he was killed by a grenade thrown at a peace rally in Jerusalem in 1983.

Biography

Emil Grunzweig was born in Cluj in Transylvania, Romania. His mother, Olga, was a survivor of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz. The family moved to France and Brazil before immigrating to Israel. Grunzweig's father, Samuel, died in France in 1963. In Israel, Olga and her two sons, Emil and Eliezer, settled in Haifa, where Emil attended the Reali High School. After graduation, he joined a Nahal unit based on Kibbutz Revivim in the Negev. As a paratrooper in the IDF, he fought in the Six-Day War. He served as a reserve officer in the War of Attrition, the Yom Kippur War, and the Lebanon War in 1982.

After his discharge from the army, he settled at Revivim, where he worked in the orchards. He studied mathematics and philosophy at Hebrew University. He taught math and coordinated social activities at Maaleh haBesor high school at Magen. He was involved in many educational projects including role-playing games with the students on issues such as the Israeli-Arab conflict, labor relations, and the relationship between religious cults and the state.

He moved to Jerusalem to complete his Master's degree in the history, philosophy, and sociology of science, and worked in education projects at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute. In this capacity, he organized joint Jewish-Arab summer camps to promote understanding between Jewish and Arab youth.

Grunzweig was killed when Yona Avrushmi lobbed a grenade into a crowd of demonstrators. Avrushmi was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, later commuted to 27 years. In 2005, Avrushmi was denied early release. Avrushmi was paroled and released from Rimonim prison on January 26, 2011.

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