Yitzhak Wittenberg

Who is Yitzhak Wittenberg?

Yitzhak Wittenberg was a Jewish resistance fighter in Vilnius during World War II. He became famous as the leader of the Fareynikte Partizaner Organizatsye, a resistance group in the Vilna Ghetto. When the Germans learned about the existence of the group, they made a request to the head of the Jewish council, Jacob Gens, that Wittenberg should be surrendered to them. Gens invited Wittenberg among others to his office where he had him arrested and later handed him over to the Gestapo.

The FPO managed to free Wittenberg. When the Germans threatened to raze the Ghetto and kill all inmates, Wittenberg surrendered himself to the Gestapo. He was later found dead in his prison cell, presumably having swallowed poison. It has been speculated that Gens slipped the poison to Wittenberg.