Previous   Next
Home » Images » 0059 Pictures From History » CPA0029365

Sweden: Folke Bernadotte, Swedish diplomat (1895-1948), United Nations Security Council mediator in the Arab–Israeli conflict of 1947–1948, Wisborg 1947

Sweden: Folke Bernadotte, Swedish diplomat (1895-1948), United Nations Security Council mediator in the Arab–Israeli conflict of 1947–1948, Wisborg 1947

Folke Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg (2 January 1895 – 17 September 1948) was a Swedish diplomat and nobleman. During World War II he negotiated the release of about 31,000 prisoners from German concentration camps including 450 Danish Jews from the Theresienstadt camp. They were released on 14 April 1945. In 1945, he received a German surrender offer from Heinrich Himmler, though the offer was ultimately rejected.

After the war, Bernadotte was unanimously chosen to be the United Nations Security Council mediator in the Arab–Israeli conflict of 1947–1948. He was assassinated in Jerusalem in 1948 by the militant Zionist group Lehi while pursuing his official duties. The decision to assassinate him had been taken by Natan Yellin-Mor, Yisrael Eldad, and Yitzhak Shamir, who later became Prime Minister of Israel.

Quick links to other images in this gallery: