Yehiel Kadishai, who was former Prime Minister Menachem Begin's bureau chief and right-hand man, died on Saturday at the age of 90. Kadishai, whose death was caused by a cardiac arrest, was to be laid to rest at the Nahalat Yitzhak cemetery in Tel Aviv on Sunday. Kadishai, born in Poland in 1923, was one of Begin's closest confidants. Their relationship began in 1964, when Kadishai was appointed secretary-general of Begin's Herut party, and continued through Begin's premiership until his death in 1992. Herzl Makov, who heads the Menachem Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem, eulogized his friend on Saturday, saying, "Kadishai was a soldier whose cause was the cause of the Hebrew state and the Jewish people; he was a member of the Irgun [one of pre-state Israel's Jewish underground movements] and joined the Jewish Infantry Brigade Group during World War II. After the Holocaust, he helped bring Jews to make aliyah." He went on to tout Kadishai's important contribution. "Kadishai returned with his wife Esther aboard the Altalena [the controversial ship that carried arms for the Irgun during the 1948 Independence War but was seized by the newly formed provisional government]. Following the war, Kadishai helped memorialize the Irgun's war dead and helped its veterans. ... Kadishai never sought power nor portfolios; the only thing he did was tend to the public's needs, with utter conviction. He was an honest person and did not stray; he was an affable person and everyone's friend, especially if they were in dire straits. Thousands of people are indebted to Kadishai, but he never tried collecting that debt." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also issued a statement in memory of Kadishai, saying, "Yehiel was modest, intelligent, witty and wholly dedicated to the land of Israel and the Jewish people. He was the manifestation of patriotism and self-sacrifice on behalf of one's state, he was alongside Begin throughout his entire career -- throughout his political wilderness and during his service at the helm of the country; he helped him through dedication and wisdom of unimaginable proportions; Kadishai was loyal to the values of our nation and was ready for any mission he was assigned; everyone loved him, and rightly so. My wife Sara and I send our heartfelt condolences to his dedicated wife Esther (Bambi) and to his entire family." Culture and Sport Minister Limor Livnat issued a statement on Saturday praising Kadishai. "Yehiel was modest and pleasant to be around," she said. "His dedication and passion about our rightful path never subsided; Yehiel was a human archive of sorts for all those speeches and other momentous moments he had experienced alongside Menachem Begin."
