Ya’akov became a member of the movement in the late 1930’s. After the Germans invaded Hungary on 19.3.1944, he set up a hiding place in his town’s ghetto where he hid for three months. When he left his hiding place, he was caught, moved to Beregszász (Berehove) and then to the Mosonyi prison in Budapest. He was freed and arrived in the “Glass House”. Ya’akov joined the underground activities and distributed forged documents. After the liberation he was sent to Transylvania in order to rehabilitate the movement.
Ya’akov made aliya and joined Kibbutz Ga’aton.