ALLON, YIGAL

(formerly Paicovitch)

(1918-80)

Born at Kfar Tabor (Mesha) in lowerGalileeon 10 October 1918, he was educated at local schools, graduating in 1937 from the KadourieAgriculturalSchool. He later studied at theHebrew University of Jerusalemand St. Antony's College, Oxford. In 1937, he helped to found and became a member ofKibbutzGinnosar. During theArabriots of 1936-39 in Palestine, he served in the underground defense forces commanded byYitzhak Sadeh.In 1941, he helped found thePalmah, a commando unit that assisted in Allied surveillance and sabotage operations inSyriaandLebanon. In 1942, he headed an underground intelligence and sabotage network in Syria and Lebanon. The following year, he became the deputy commander of the Palmah and in 1945 became its commander, a post he retained until 1948, when the Palmah was integrated into the newly formedIsrael Defense Forces. In this capacity, he directed sabotage against civil and military installations of theBritish mandatorygovernment and supportedAliya Bet. He was commander of the southern front in the latter phases of Israel'sWar of Independence(1948—49) and drove the Arab armies out of theNegev.

After Prime MinisterDavid Ben-Guriondissolved the Palmah, Allon entered politics. In 1954, he was elected to theKnessetand served as minister of labor from 1961 to 1967. In June 1967, he participated in the inner warcabinet, which helped to plan the strategy of theSix-Day War(1967). He was the author of theAllon Plan. In July 1968, he became deputy prime minister and minister for immigrant (seeALIYA) absorption. From 1969 to 1974, he served as deputy prime minister and minister ofeducationand culture and from 1974 to 1977 was deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs.