Beit HaEdut (Testimony House), the Holocaust museum in Moshav Nir Galim, said its annual “Operation Dugo” memorial initiative would take place on Sunday for its 11th year, inviting Israelis and Jews worldwide to honor Holocaust survivors by eating falafel and sharing photos online.
Organizers said tens of thousands of participants were expected to join, including schoolchildren, IDF soldiers, youth movements, Jewish communities abroad, and Israeli embassies, with many schools opening the day with a lesson about the late Holocaust survivor David “Dugo” Leitner and his legacy.
A central feature this year is a commemorative stamp planned by the Israel Postal Company’s philatelic service in memory of Leitner, illustrated by Michel Kichka and Miri Nistor. According to Ynet News, the stamp is set to be officially issued next month on February 10, 2026, after being unveiled around the time of the initiative.
“Operation Dugo 2026 is being held this year under the banner of the triumph of the spirit, the spirit of Dugo, the spirit of Holocaust survivors and the spirit of the entire Jewish people,” Beit HaEdut CEO Maayan Karni Yehuda said, calling it a tradition that “unites Israelis and Jews around the world.”
'Warm, round rolls'
Operation Dugo grew out of Leitner’s personal tradition of eating falafel every January 18, the date linked to the start of the Auschwitz death marches in 1945.
Ynet reported that, as a 14-year-old prisoner, Leitner held onto a memory of “warm, round rolls” his mother described as waiting for him in the Land of Israel, and later associated that image with falafel after immigrating to Israel.
Beit HaEdut, which Leitner co-founded, launched the public initiative in 2016, turning the ritual into an educational event that encourages participants to eat falafel, take photos, and share them on social media.
Leitner died in 2023 at age 93, and the initiative has continued in his memory.
This year also marked the birth of Leitner’s great-grandson, David Amichai, named in his honor. Yohai Kor, Leitner’s grandson and the child’s father, said that the name reflected his grandfather’s character and the phrase “Am Yisrael Chai” that he would say at family gatherings.