Hillel Kook | |
|---|---|
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| Faction represented in the Knesset | |
| 1949–1951 | Herut |
| 1951 | Independent |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 24 July 1915 Kriukai, Russian Empire |
| Died | 18 August 2001 (aged 86) Kfar Shmaryahu, Israel |
Hillel Kook (Hebrew: הלל קוק, 24 July 1915 –18 August 2001), also known as Peter Bergson (Hebrew: פיטר ברגסון), was a Revisionist Zionist activist and politician.
Kook led the Irgun's efforts in the United States during World War II to promote Zionism and mainly to save the abandoned Jews of Europe during the Holocaust. His rescue group's activism was the main factor leading to President Roosevelt establishing the US War Refugee Board, which protected and rescued tens of thousands and possibly many more, partly via the Wallenberg mission. He later served in Israel's first Knesset.