Memorial to Jewish Soldiers in the Soviet Army at Mount Herzl

Design and inscriptions

Completed in 1989, the memorial was conceived by the veterans' organization representing Red Army participants and executed with architectural input from Yizhak Rachelin and engineering by Ze'ev Kariv. The principal element is a low wall built of pink and red stone. Prominently carved into the structure is the figure "20,000," a number inscribed on the memorial to represent the fallen Jews of the Soviet forces; the wall also bears a biblical citation from Judges 3:2: "The Lord did this to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites." In front of the wall a short flight of steps leads up to a small ceremonial plaza flanked by two panels marked with the years "1941" and "1945," emphasizing the period of the global conflict.

Location and context

The memorial occupies a place within Mount Herzl's National Military and Police Cemetery, the national site of remembrance for Israel and the location of multiple military and communal monuments. Its placement underscores a particular facet of Jewish wartime experience: service in the Soviet armed forces rather than in Jewish or Allied units elsewhere. Visitors can find the precise map coordinates marked locally and online for reference via official cemetery guides and listings (coordinates).

History and commemorative use

The project was driven by the Organization of Veterans of the Red Army in World War II and their families during the late 1980s, a period when communities in Israel were formalizing memorials for diverse wartime experiences. Since its dedication, the memorial has served as a gathering place for veterans, descendants and public officials on anniversaries related to World War II and to Soviet wartime remembrance. It complements other commemorative sites that recall Jewish participation in foreign and Allied militaries (memorial, Red Army, World War II).

Significance and notable facts

• The memorial highlights the often-overlooked contribution of Jewish citizens of the Soviet Union who fought under Soviet command during the war.
• Its inscription of a specific casualty number and a biblical verse links modern remembrance with religious and communal frames of meaning.
• Situated on Mount Herzl, it forms part of a broader landscape of national memory in Mount Herzl and Jerusalem, where multiple groups commemorate distinct wartime experiences.

As with many memorials, the Mount Herzl monument functions both as a place of private mourning for families and as a public site of historical memory, reminding visitors of the complex and multinational dimensions of Jewish military service during World War II.