Israeli poet- warrior Gouri dies at 94
Jerusalem: Haim Gouri, the Israeli poet who fought with an elite combat unit, covered the trial of Adolf Eichmann and became a national icon, died on Wednesday aged 94, his family said.
Gouri published more than 20 books, with his poetry including reflections on his time as part of the elite Palmach combat unit predating Israel’s founding. He fought in the Arab- Israeli war of 1948 surrounding Israel’s creation the same year and served as a reserve officer in the Six- Day War of 1967. After the Holocaust, he was sent to Europe to help Jewish refugees migrate into what was then British mandatory Palestine.
A number of his poems were set to music and became popular songs in Israel. His coverage of the trial of Nazi war criminal Eichmann later became a book, Facing the Glass Booth.
Born in Tel Aviv in 1923, Gouri came from a politically engaged family, with his father part of the Mapai party of Israeli founding father and PM David Ben- Gurion.
Gouri was also a documentary filmmaker, and his film on the Holocaust The 81st Blow was nominated for an Oscar. He was awarded the prestigious Israel Prize in 1988 among a list of others.
In 2011, France recognised him as a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, with Gouri having translated the work of French poets into Hebrew.