Eliyahu Hakim was born in 1927 to a wealthy family in
Beirut. His father, a fine silk dealer, had always dreamed of returning to the
Land of
Israel and finally did so in 1933 when he moved his family to the port city of
Haifa. Although the move had been a great financial risk, importing silk proved to be a very lucrative business and in 1936, the family moved into a spacious home on Mount Carmel overlooking the scenic
Haifa bay.
Young Eliyahu Hakim traveled in fast social circles, often frequenting
Haifa’s nightclubs and cafés. Handsome and adventurous, he earned the nickname “Roxy” for his dancing abilities. Although he appeared to most people as a wild and carefree teenager, Eliyahu was deeply troubled by the oppression of his people under British occupation.
In December 1941, 767 Jewish refugees from
Rumania had boarded a boat called the
Struma. They planned to travel to
Istanbul, apply for visas and then sail home to
Palestine. The
Struma was overcrowded and lacked adequate sanitary facilities. Despite engine problems, it reached
Istanbul on December 16. There, the passengers were informed that
Palestine’s High Commissioner, Sir Harold MacMichael, would under no circumstances permit the ship to enter the country. The dilapidated boat was kept quarantined in
Istanbul’s harbor for more than two months. Turkish authorities denied the passengers permission to land without British agreement to their continued journey home. On February 23, the Turkish police towed the boat out to sea and abandoned it. It sank the next day and only one passenger, David Stoliar, survived. Posters with Sir Harold MacMichael’s face on them appeared all over
Palestine reading: “Wanted for Murder”
Following the tragedy of the
Struma, Eliyahu was invited by schoolmates to a Purim party. He wrote in his diary: “How can we even ask if we should have a Purim party? How can the youth of
Palestine go to cafés and drink when they know that only yesterday our brothers drowned at sea? These people have no conscience. If we don’t understand what our reaction should be – that the very minimum we should do is mourn – then this has been a slap in the face to the entire Jewish people.”
Eliyahu joined Lehi and soon proved himself a reliable soldier. Despite his privileged upbringing, he adapted well to underground life and even became known as the organization’s best marksman. He was selected, along with Eliyahu Bet-Zuri, to travel to
Cairo and assassinate Lord Moyne. The mission was successful but the boys were arrested.
On trial, the two Eliyahus used the courtroom as a platform to educate the world to their struggle for freedom. At one point Hakim told the judges: “We accuse Lord Moyne and the government he represented of murdering hundreds and thousands of our brothers and sisters. We accuse them of stealing our homeland and our property…Where is the law by which they should be tried for their crimes?”
Both Eliyahus were sentenced to death. When approaching the gallows for execution, Hakim began to laugh. When a guard questioned his unusual demeanor before death, he responded: “I am laughing to the next generation who will see a Hebrew flag over Jerusalem.” Both Eliyahus then sang the HaTikva and were hanged.
Eliyahu Hakim was born in 1927 to a wealthy family in 
