Haim Arbiv was born in Benghazi, Libya in 1934, under Italian rule. At the end of 1940, the British launched an attack and held the region for several months until the Germans pushed them back out. During the battles, Haim and his mother fled the city to seek shelter from the bombings.

When the Italians regained power, the treatment of Jews worsened since the Jews were considered collaborators with the enemy. Some were arrested, and Jewish property was confiscated.

In 1942, Haim's family was deported to the Giado concentration camp, 1,200 kilometers away from Benghazi. In Giado, each family received a small amount of living space inside a shack, with only bedsheets separating them. Hundreds of Jews died of hunger, fatigue, and disease, among them Haim’s a newborn niece.

After their liberation by the British army in 1943, the family returned to Benghazi.

In 1949, Haim and his family immigrated to Israel. Due to his command of Arabic, Haim served in the IDF Intelligence Corps.

Haim has a son, a daughter and five grandchildren.

Haim Arbiv lit one of the torches at the official state memorial ceremony on Holocaust Memorial Day.