Israel Unveils Memorials for WWII Paratroopers Haviva Reik and Rafael Reis in Prague Cemetery

Eighty-one years after their execution by the Nazis, the Israeli Ministry of Defense completed a historic commemoration by erecting memorials for paratroopers Haviva Reik and Rafael Reis at the cemetery in Prague where they were buried. The memorials were inaugurated in a state ceremony attended by the Czech Defense Minister, the Czech Chief of Staff, the Israeli Ambassador to the Czech Republic, and other dignitaries. This initiative was coordinated extensively between the Ministry’s Families, Commemoration, and Heritage Division and Czech authorities.

Reik and Reis were part of a group of Jewish paratroopers from the Yishuv who parachuted behind enemy lines during World War II to assist Jews, connect with Allied forces, and support partisan movements. Twelve members of their group were captured by the Nazis, and seven, including Reik and Reis, were executed. Haviva Reik, originally from Slovakia, immigrated to Mandatory Palestine at age 18, joined the Palmach, and volunteered for the mission to aid Slovakian Jews after learning of the Holocaust. Her family perished in Auschwitz and Majdanek. Rafael Reis parachuted with her into the Bistrica area of Slovakia, where they helped local Jews and coordinated with Jewish youth movements fighting as partisans before their capture and execution.

At the ceremony, Arieh Moalem, Deputy Director and Head of the Families, Commemoration, and Heritage Division, emphasized Israel’s commitment to remembering fallen fighters: “Your names are engraved in our memory, your heroism lives within us, and your legacy will continue from generation to generation.” The memorials stand at the site of their original burial before their remains are repatriated to Israel, symbolizing the closure of a historic chapter and Israel’s dedication to honoring the Jewish fighters who died resisting the Nazis.