Dr. Sneh to Be Buried in Accordance with Jewish Religious Tradition

Dr. Moshe Sneh, who died here last night of a kidney ailment at the age of 63, will be buried here tomorrow in accordance with Jewish religious tradition as he requested in his will. Just before he was operated on last Jan., he wrote his will to his family in which he asked for a Jewish religious burial service, with recitations from the Psalms and Kaddish by his son.

His coffin was brought here this evening from Jerusalem where Dr. Sneh died, to be placed in the headquarters building of Histadrut so that Israelis may pay their final respects to the man who headed the pre-State Jewish defense force, the Haganah. Defense Minister Moshe Dayan published today his personal condolences to the Sneh family.

Originally a member of the General Zionists, Dr. Sneh moved steadily to the left in his political views. In 1947 he joined Mapam and was a member of Mapam’s Left Socialist wing until be joined the Communist Party in 1954. He was a Mapam MK from 1949-64. From 1954-65 and from 1969 to date, he was a Maki MK. Dr. Sneh was the head of the pro-Israel Maki (Communist Party) at the time of his death. He remained a traditional Jews in outlook, though not outwardly in behavior.

API-HH MOURNS ‘GREAT LEADER IN ZION’

In New York, the Americans for Progressive Israel-Hashomer Hatzair, a Socialist-Zionist group in ideological agreement with Mapam, expressed its sorrow at the death of Dr. Sneh. In a statement, API-HH termed him a “great leader in Zion” whose death is a great loss to Israel, to the Jewish people and to progressive forces all over the world.

His political path veered sharply, the statement noted, but “whether or not we agreed with his views we saw him always as a leader of integrity fighting fearlessly for his ideas, deeply rooted in Judaism, full of love for his people and his land. He never compromised his position nor did he accept orders from outsiders.”