NILI Museum

NILI Museum

Nili Museum – “the Eternal One of Israel will not lie” (I Samuel 16:29)

This museum tells the story of the courageous and heroic deeds of members of the Nili spy network and memorializes their actions during World War I and their contribution to the ending of the Ottoman rule and the entry of the British to the Land of Israel.

Aaronsohn House – the Nili Museum – is a unique heritage site of national historic value. This museum documents and presents the history of Aaronsohn family and the Nili spy network and passes on the historic memory to the younger generation and the general public: university students, youth groups, soldiers, individuals and family groups from inside Israel and abroad.  A visit to this museum is a lesson in an important chapter of the Jewish People and the Land of Israel.‏

Aaronsohn House – the Nili Museum was built in Zichron Yaakov beside the Aaronsohn family home, which was the headquarters of the Nili network’s activities. The family’s home was built over 130 years ago and its rooms and their contents, with their unique character, have been preserved intact.

The visit to the museum includes an audiovisual presentation, an exhibition of photos, letters and documents, a tour of the family’s home and the secret escape tunnel used by the members of Nili.                            The visit to the museum lasts about 50 minutes.

The Nili spy network was founded in 1915 and operated in this country during World War I. The network’s founders and leaders were the agronomist Aaron Aaronsohn of Zichron Yaakov, his sister Sarah, his brother Alexander, and their friends Avshalom Feinberg of Hadera, the brothers Naaman and Eitan Belkind of Rishon Letzion and Yosef Lishansky of Metula. They were joined by dozens of members of the moshava farming village.

Nili’s objectives were:

• To help the British conquer this country from the Turks – by gathering military intelligence information.
• To support the Jewish community in the Land of Israel, which suffered from starvation and illness during the war.
• To bring knowledge of what was happening in the Land of Israel to the rest of the world.
• To realize the dream of the establishment of a Jewish state in the Land of Israel.

The events that led to the exposing of the network in September 1917 were the discovery of a British gold coin in the Arab market in Ramle, a postal carrier pigeon that accidentally landed in the courtyard of the governor of Caesarea, and the arrest of Naaman Belkind by the Turks.  Following those three incidents, the Turks began a campaign of threats and terror against the Jewish community, in order to capture members of the network. Many Nili members were captured and brutally tortured. Sarah committed suicide after suffering terrible torture. Naaman Belkind and Yosef Lishansky were executed by hanging, in Damascus. The courage and heroism of the members of Nili helped the British conquer this country and end the rule of the Ottoman regime.

Opening hours:  The museum and the Aaronsohn family home are open to visitors–

Mo-Th: 9am-5p

Tours in Hebrew start every half hour

Tours in other languages start every hour on the half hour

Closed:  Sabbaths and Jewish festivals; on the day before Jewish New Year, the Day of Atonement and Passover; and Memorial Day

for Israel’s Fallen Soldiers and Independence Day

Email: nili-arc@nili-museum.org.il 

Gallery