Asaf Simhoni

spouse = Delilah Aisrzon (m. 1943; d. 1952) relations = other_work = signature =

Asaf Simhoni (Also spelled Asaf Simchoni; ; October 9, 1922 - November 6, 1956 ) was a major general in the IDF, served as head of Northern Command, Assistant Head of Operations Directorate, and later as the Head of Southern Command.

Biography Simhoni's wife Delilah and their three children. Left to right: Yoav, Avner, YiftahTel-Yosef; 1952 Asaf Simhoni was born in Nahalal, Mandatory Palestine, on October 9, 1922. He was the oldest son of Yehudit Simhonit and Mordecai Simhoni, they settled in Nahalal, the newly established first moshav. Yehudit Simhonit's father, Moses Yivzori, was an ardent Zionist and a scholar well versed in the Bible and the Talmud. His house was the meeting place of intellectuals and youth members of the Jewish colonies sought to immigrate to Israel and work in agriculture. The Simhoni family came to Mandatory Palestine in 1921 becoming one of the founders of the moshav Nahalal, one of the state's first moshav shitufi. His mother, Yehudit Simhonit, was a Zionist activist and politician - a member of the first Knesset and a member of the Mapai party.

Military career Haganah and Palmach

During the Arab revolt, at the age of 16, Simhoni led a student revolt against the school that refused to participate in the war effort.

During the first two years of his service in the Palmach, Simhoni served as a platoon commander. He also served as a guide as part of his unit in the Jezreel Valley, Upper Galilee, and the Negev. In 1944 he passed a platoon commanders course and was appointed commander of the Palmach's first settlement in Beit Keshet, a small kibbutz in the Lower Galilee near the Kadoorie Agricultural High School.

In 1945 Simhoni was appointed commander of the Gadna (the Youth Battalions) in Haifa.

In May 1948, Simhoni was appointed commander of company B (the "religious company"), a company composed of religious and secular recruits. After the end of a short amount of training, he commanded a platoon in Operation Matateh - an offensive attack with the objective of capturing flatlands between Lake Tiberias and Lake Hula in order to open a route Tiberias-Rosh Pinna. At the end of the month they fought against the Lebanese army in Operation Yiftach

Israel Defense Forces

Members of Unit 101 after Operation Egged (November 1955). Standing l to r: Lt. Meir Har-Zion, Maj. Arik Sharon, Lt. Gen Moshe Dayan, Capt. Dani Matt, Lt. Moshe Efron, Col. Asaf Simhoni; on ground, l to r: Capt. Aharon Davidi, Lt. Ya'akov Ya'akov, Capt. Raful Eitan After the 1947–1949 Palestine war and after his resignation from the Constituent Assembly, Simhoni was enlisted in the regular army. In April 1949, toward the end of the war, he was appointed commander of the Yiftach Brigade with the rank of lieutenant colonel. The brigade was turned into the 11th Division of the IDF.

In there, he held a number of senior positions while being on a relatively speedy promotion track. He became the Deputy Commander of the regimental school under the command of Yitzhak Rabin, later the brigade commander of the 17th Division and then Commander of the Golani Brigade.

From 1952 to 1954 Simhoni was the deputy head of Northern Command. Following the end of his post, Simhoni was transferred to the General Staff where he served as the assistant chief of the Operations Directorate. In that capacity, Simhoni handled the organization and planning of the reprisal operations that were conducted by Unit 101 and the Paratroopers Brigade under the command of Ariel Sharon. There he also dealt with organizing and training the Armored Corps shortly after its formation.

In February 1956 Simhoni was sent to a senior officer training course in England where he excelled in his studied.

On November 2, Simhoni led his troops in the occupation of Gaza which ended with the surrender of the local governor and commander of the armed forces in the Gaza Strip. ) died in the crash. According to some accounts, Simhoni had a meeting with Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion to prove to him, using secret documents, that contrary to the allegation of the chief of staff, he did not violate an order when he ordered Armored Brigade into Sinai.

Legacy and commemoration Simhoni was posthumously promoted to major general by the order of Defense Minister David Ben-Gurion, against the wishes of Chief of Staff Major General Moshe Dayan who had sharp conflicts with Simhoni. He was buried in the Mount Herzl National Military Cemetery.

President Zalman Shazar wrote the song "LaMnatzeach Misfad" in his memory.