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Weizmann, Chaim   Cerca

Definizione

Born in Russia's Pale of Settlement in 1874, scientist Chaim Weizmann became Israel's first president (1949-1952). Even as a young boy, Weizmann revealed his convictions in Zionism. After earning a doctorate in chemistry in 1899, Weizmann moved to Manchester, England (1904) where he became a reader in biochemistry by 1913. Weizmann married medical student Vera Chatzman in 1906. After immigrating to England, Weizmann filled important roles in the World Zionist Organization and the English Zionist Federation. He also helped secure the Balfour Declaration (November 2, 1917), which offered British support for the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine. Weizmann served as president of the World Zionist Organization (1920-31, 1935-46). In 1929 he initiated the establishement of an enlarged Jewish Agency. His cautious Zionism often provoked frustration from extremist Zionists. Beginning in August 1933, Weizmann headed the Jewish Agency's Department for the Settlement of German Refugees. In this role, Weizmann worked to coordinate Jewish relief efforts and organizations aimed at aiding German Jews and bringing them to Palestine. During his second tenure as president of the World Zionist Organization, Weizmann tried to soften the racial persecution of the Jews in Europe by meeting with foreign dignitaries and leaders. When Britain declared war, Weizmann promised full Jewish cooperation against Hitler and proposed a Jewish fighting division, the Jewish Brigade Group in the British Army. Throughout World War II, Weizmann worked to organize rescue efforts, including a suspension of the White Paper regulations and the bombing of Nazi extermination camps. Great Britain did not approve any of Weizmann's proposals. Although he was removed from the presidency of the World Zionist Organization at the end of 1946, Weizmann continued to work towards Zionist goals. He was appointed Israel's first president in 1949. (en-US)

Fonte

Encyclopaedia Britannica: a dictionary of arts, sciences, and general literature. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1995. Vol. 12, p. 565-566

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