State of Israel  Geography Land of Israel · Districts · Cities Transport · Mediterranean · Red Sea Sea of Galilee · Jerusalem · Tel Aviv · Haifa Image File history File links COA_of_Israel. ... Anthem: Hatikvah (The Hope) Capital  Jerusalem Largest city Jerusalem Official languages Hebrew, Arabic Government Parliamentary democracy  - President Moshe Katsav1  - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert  - Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik Independence from the League of Nations mandate administered by the United Kingdom   - Declaration 14 May 1948 (05 Iyar 5708)  Area  - Total 20,770... Image File history File links Flag_of_Israel. ... Kingdom of Israel: Early ancient historical Israel — land in pink is the approximate area under direct central royal administration during the United Monarchy. ... Map of the districts of Israel Population density by geographic region, sub-district and district (thicker border indicates higher tier). ... Jerusalem Tel Aviv-Jaffa Haifa Rishon LeZion Ashdod Beersheba Petah Tikva Netanya Holon Bnei Brak Bat Yam Ramat Gan Ashkelon Rehovot The following list of cities in Israel is based on the current index of the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... Location of the Red Sea The Red Sea is an inlet of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Asia. ... The Sea of Galilee or Lake Kinneret (Hebrew ים כנרת), is Israels largest freshwater lake. ... For other uses, see Jerusalem (disambiguation). ... Tel-Aviv was founded on empty dunes north of the existing city of Jaffa. ... Hebrew Arabic حَيْفَا Founded in 3rd century CE Government City District Haifa Population 267,000 1,039,000 (metropolitan area) Jurisdiction 63,666 dunams (63. ... 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The Altalena Affair was a violent confrontation that took place in June of 1948 between the newly-formed Israel Defense Forces and the Irgun (Etzel), a paramilitary Jewish group. The confrontation involved a cargo ship, Altalena, captained by Monroe Fein, which carried weapons and fighters for the Irgun. Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Emblem of the IDF The Israel Defense Forces are part of the Israeli Security Forces. ... Irgun emblem. ... Lieutenant Monroe Fein[1], (b. ...

Background

As the British Mandate of Palestine was coming to an end, Jewish leaders proclaimed the establishment of the State of Israel (May 14, 1948). The declaration of independence was followed by the establishment of a provisional government and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The process of absorbing all military organizations into the IDF proved complicated, and several paramilitary groups continued to be active outside the IDF. One of the largest groups, Irgun (known in Hebrew as Etzel, an acronym for Irgun Tzvai Leumi, lit. National Military Organization), planned to ship weapons and fighters to the newly formed state. The plans included a ship renamed Altalena (a pseudonym of Zionist leader Ze'ev Jabotinsky) and a target date for the ship's arrival from Europe was set to mid May 1948. The Altalena, purchased by Irgun members abroad, was originally intended to reach Israel on May 15, 1948, loaded with fighters and military equipment. Flag The approximate borders of the British Mandate circa 1922. ... David Ben Gurion (First Prime Minister of Israel) publicly pronouncing the Declaration of the State of Israel, May 14, 1948. ... May 14 is the 134th day of the year (135th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The provisional government of Israel (‎, HaMemshela HaZmanit) was created on May 14, 1948, the day that Israel declared independence, and lasted until the formation of the first government in March 1949 following the first Knesset elections in January that year. ... Emblem of the IDF The Israel Defense Forces are part of the Israeli Security Forces. ... Irgun emblem. ... Zeev Jabotinsky Zeev (Vladimir) Jabotinsky MBE (Hebrew: זאב זבוטינסקי, Russian: Зеэв (Владимир Евгеньевич) Жаботинский, 18 October 1880 – 4 August 1940) was a Zionist leader, author, orator, soldier, and founder of the Jewish Legion in World War I. He is however most known for being the founder and leader of the jewish terroristgroup Irgun. ... is the 135th day of the year (136th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Weapons purchase and organizational matters took longer than expected, however, and the sailing was postponed for several weeks. Meanwhile, on June 1st, an agreement had been signed for the absorption of the Irgun into the IDF and one of the clauses stated that the Irgun had to cease all independent arms acquisition activities. Consequently, representatives of the Israel Government were informed about the ship and its sailing schedule. June 1 is the 152nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (153rd in leap years), with 213 days remaining. ...

The Irgun headquarters in Paris did their best to keep the Altalena's preparations for departure a secret, but it was difficult to conceal the movement of 940 fighters and the loading of a large quantity of arms and ammunition. It was feared that if the plans were discovered, attempts might be made to sabotage the Altalena at sea.

For this reason, when it raised anchor on June 11th, no cable was sent to the Irgun command in Israel, for fear that it would fall into the wrong hands. These precautionary measures proved fruitless, however, and the following day Radio London reported that the Altalena had sailed from Port-de-Bouc, France in the direction of Israel with 1,000 Jewish volunteers and a large quantity of weapons on board. June 11 is the 162nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (163rd in leap years), with 203 days remaining. ... Port-de-Bouc is a town and commune of the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France. ...

It should be recalled that the first truce had begun on June 11th. When the Irgun leaders in Israel learned through the broadcast of the embarkation of the vessel, they feared that this breach of the truce conditions (i.e., the ban on bringing military equipment and fighters into the country) would be revealed. Menachem Begin decided therefore to postpone the arrival of the ship, and the Irgun staff secretary, Zippora Levi-Kessel, sent a wireless message to the Altalena to stay put and await orders. A similar cable was sent to Shmuel Katz (member of the General Headquarters), who was then in Paris, but the ship had already left the day before the message arrived.   (‎, August 16, 1913 – March 9, 1992) was a Jewish-Polish head of the Zionist underground group the Irgun, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and the first Likud Prime Minister of Israel. ... Samuel Katz (Hebrew: שמואל ×›×¥ Shmuel Katz), alias Mooki (Hebrew: מוקי) (born December 9, 1914) is an Israeli writer, historian and journalist. ...

On June 15th, Begin and his comrades held a meeting with government representatives, at which Begin announced that the ship had sailed without his knowledge and that he wanted to hold consultations on how to proceed. In his diary for June 16th, David Ben-Gurion, the head of the provisional government, wrote the following about the meeting: June 15 is the 166th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (167th in leap years), with 199 days remaining. ... June 16 is the 167th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (168th in leap years), with 198 days remaining. ... Ben Gurion redirects here. ...

Yisrael [Galili] and Skolnik [Levi Eshkol] met yesterday with Begin. Tomorrow or the next day their ship is due to arrive: 4,500 tons, bringing 800-900 men, 5,000 rifles, 250 Bren guns, 5 million bullets, 50 bazookas, 10 Bren carriers. Zipstein (director of Tel Aviv port) assumes that at night it will be possible to unload it all. I believe we should not endanger Tel Aviv port. They should not be sent back. They should be disembarked at an unknown shore.

Galili informed Begin of Ben-Gurion's consent to the landing of the ship, adding a request that it be done as fast as possible. Zippora Levi-Kessel then radioed the vessel to come in at full speed. The following day, a working meeting was held between Irgun representatives and Ministry of Defence personnel. While the Irgun proposed directing the Altalena to Tel Aviv beach, Ministry of Defence representatives claimed that the Kfar Vitkin beach was preferable, since it would be easier to evade UN observers there. The ship was therefore instructed to make for Kfar Vitkin. Yisrael Galili (10 February 1911-8 February 1986) was an Israeli politician and member of Knesset. ... ▶(?) (Hebrew לֵוִי אֶשְׁכּוֹל ) (Born Levi Skolnick) (Hebrew לֵוִי שְׁקוֹלְנִיק) (October 25, 1895 - February 26, 1969), was the third Prime Minister of Israel from 1963 until his death of a heart attack in 1969. ... For other uses, see Rifle (disambiguation). ... The Bren (from Brno (the Czechoslovakian town of design) and Enfield, the location of the British Royal Small Arms Factory), usually called the Bren Gun, was a series of squad automatic weapon/light machine guns adopted by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles into the 1980s. ... For other uses, see Bazooka (disambiguation). ... The Universal Carrier, usually known as a Bren Gun Carrier (even when it was not carrying a Bren), was a small, tracked British-designed military vehicle, used widely by Allied forces during World War II. Universal Carriers were usually used for transporting personnel and equipment, mostly support weapons, or as... Tel-Aviv was founded on empty dunes north of the existing city of Jaffa. ... Tel-Aviv was founded on empty dunes north of the existing city of Jaffa. ... // In addition to the current 192 member states, the United Nations welcomes many international agencies, entities, and one non-member state as observers. ...

Confrontation with the IDF

Intense negotiations between representatives of the provisional government (headed by David Ben Gurion) and the Irgun (headed by Menachem Begin) followed the departure of Altalena from France. Among the issues discussed were logistics of the ship's landing and distribution of the cargo between the military organizations. Whilst there was agreement on the anchoring place of the Altalena, there were differences of opinion about the allocation of the cargo. Ben-Gurion agreed to Begin's initial request that 20% of the weapons be dispatched to the Irgun's Jerusalem Battalion, which was still fighting independently. His second request, however, that the remainder be transferred to the IDF to equip the newly-incorporated Irgun battalions, was rejected by the Government representatives, who interpreted the request as a demand to reinforce an "army within an army." The provisional government of Israel (‎, HaMemshela HaZmanit) was created on May 14, 1948, the day that Israel declared independence, and lasted until the formation of the first government in March 1949 following the first Knesset elections in January that year. ... For other uses, see Jerusalem (disambiguation). ... Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO military graphic symbols This article is about the military unit. ...

The Altalena reached Kfar Vitkin in the late afternoon of Sunday, June 20th. Among the Irgun members waiting on the shore was Menachem Begin, who greeted the arrivals with great emotion. After the passengers had disembarked, members of the fishing village of Michmoret helped unload the cargo of military equipment. Concomitantly with the events at Kfar Vitkin, the government had convened in Tel Aviv for its weekly meeting. Ben-Gurion reported on the meetings which had preceded the arrival of the Altalena, and was adamant in his demand that Begin surrender and hand over of all the weapons: This article does not cite any references or sources. ... June 20 is the 171st day of the year (172nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 194 days remaining. ...

We must decide whether to hand over power to Begin or to order him to cease his separate activities. If he does not do so, we will open fire! Otherwise, we must decide to disperse our own army.

The debate ended in a resolution to empower the army to use force if necessary to overcome the Irgun and to confiscate the ship and its cargo. Implementation of this decision was assigned to the Alexandroni Brigade, commanded by Dan Even (Epstein), which the following day surrounded the Kfar Vitkin area. Dan Even issued the following ultimatum:

"To: M. Begin
By special order from the Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defence Forces, I am empowered to confiscate the weapons and military materials which have arrived on the Israeli coast in the area of my jurisdiction in the name of the Israel Government. I have been authorized to demand that you hand over the weapons to me for safekeeping and to inform you that you should establish contact with the supreme command. You are required to carry out this order immediately. If you do not agree to carry out this order, I shall use all the means at my disposal in order to implement the order and to requisition the weapons which have reached shore and transfer them from private possession into the possession of the Israel government. I wish to inform you that the entire area is surrounded by fully armed military units and armored cars, and all roads are blocked. I hold you fully responsible for any consequences in the event of your refusal to carry out this order. The immigrants - unarmed - will be permitted to travel to the camps in accordance with your arrangements. You have ten minutes to give me your answer.
D.E., Brigade Commander"

The ultimatum, and in particular the demand for an answer within ten minutes, was insulting and unrealistic. It was made, according to Even "in order not to give the Irgun commander time for lengthy considerations and to gain the advantage of surprise." Begin refused to respond to the ultimatum, and all attempts at mediation failed. Begin's failure to respond was a blow to Even's prestige, and a clash was now inevitable. Fighting ensued and there were a number of casualties. In order to prevent further bloodshed, the Kfar Vitkin settlers initiated negotiations between Yaakov Meridor (Begin's deputy) and Dan Even, which ended in a general ceasefire and the transfer of the weapons on shore to the local IDF commander. Yaakov Meridor (Hebrew: יעקב מרידור, born Yaakov Viniarsky on 29 September 1913, died 30 June 1995) was a notable Israeli independence fighter, businessman and politician. ...

Altalena on fire after being shelled near Tel-Aviv

Begin had meanwhile boarded the Altalena, which was now heading for Tel Aviv. He hoped that it would be possible to enter into a dialogue with the Provisional Government and to unload the remaining weapons peacefully. But this was not the case. Ben-Gurion ordered Yigael Yadin (acting Chief of Staff) to concentrate large forces on the Tel Aviv beach and to take the ship by force. Heavy guns were transferred to the area and at four in the afternoon, Ben-Gurion ordered the shelling of the Altalena. One of the shells hit the ship, which began to burn. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Yigael Yadin (March 20, 1917 - June 28, 1984) was an Israeli archeologist, politician, and the second Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). ...

There was danger that the fire would spread to the holds which contained explosives, and Captain Monroe Fein ordered all aboard to abandon ship. People jumped into the water, whilst their comrades on shore set out to meet them on rafts. Although Captain Fein flew the white flag of surrender, automatic fire continued to be directed at the unarmed survivors swimming in the water. Begin, who was on deck, agreed to leave the ship only after the last of the wounded had been evacuated. Sixteen Irgun fighters were killed in the confrontation with the army; six were killed in the Kfar Vitkin area and ten on Tel Aviv beach. Three IDF soldiers were killed: two at Kfar Vitkin and one in Tel Aviv. Lieutenant Monroe Fein[1], (b. ...

After the shelling of the Altalena, more than 200 Irgun fighters were arrested on Ben-Gurion's orders. Most of them were released several weeks later, with the exception of five senior commanders (Moshe Hason, Eliyahu Lankin, Yaakov Meridor, Bezalel Amitzur, and Hillel Kook), who were detained for more than two months. (They were released, due to public pressure, on August 27, 1948). Hillel Kook (Hebrew: , born 24 July 1915, died 18 August 2001), also known as Peter Bergson (Hebrew: פיטר ברגסון), was a Revisionist Zionist activist, politician, and prominent member of the Irgun. ... is the 239th day of the year (240th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Aftermath

The Altalena Affair exposed deep rifts between the main political factions in Israel, and continued to be a major source of bitter controversy in the Israeli political discourse for decades. Proponents of Ben Gurion's actions praised them as essential to establishing the Government's authority and discouraging factionalism and formation of rival armies. Furthermore, Ben Gurion's supporters have argued that a state must have a monopoly over the use of force (see Max Weber for a detailed discussion of this idea). The Irgun, by attempting to import weapons to use as a private militia, was undermining the legitimacy of the fledgling State of Israel. For the politician, see Max Weber (politician). ... Lebanese Kataeb militia A Militia is an army composed of ordinary [1] citizens to provide defense, emergency or paramilitary service, or those engaged in such activity. ...

Opponents condemned the unnecessary violence and claimed that opportunities for a peaceful resolution were intentionally frustrated by Ben-Gurion and top IDF officers. As events have faded into history, the debate on Altalena in Israel has become less intense, though it was reignited for a short time when a political party headed by Menachem Begin won the Israeli general elections in 1977. Opponents still hold a grudge against Labor for discriminating against them before and after the creation of the state and hold his leadership responsible for not doing enough to defend Jerusalem during the Israeli War of Independence. They believe that had Ben Gurion allowed the Altalena to resupply fighters in Jerusalem, the war would have ended more successfully for Israel{The Revolt, by M. Begin, page 170}. Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... The 1948 Arab-Israeli War, called the War of Independence by Israelis and al Nakba the catastrophe by Arabs, was the first in a series of wars in the Arab-Israeli conflict. ...

Begin later said, "My greatest accomplishment was not retaliating and causing civil war". Years later, on the eve of the Six-Day War, in June 1967 (when Levi Eshkol was Prime Minister), Menachem Begin joined a delegation which visited Sde Boker to ask David Ben-Gurion to return and accept the premiership again. After that meeting, Ben-Gurion said that if he had then known Begin as he did now, the face of history would have been different^{[citation needed]}. A civil war is a war in which parties within the same culture, society or nationality fight against each other for the control of political power. ... Combatants Israel Egypt Syria Jordan Iraq Commanders Yitzhak Rabin, Moshe Dayan, Uzi Narkiss, Israel Tal, Mordechai Hod, Ariel Sharon Abdel Hakim Amer, Abdul Munim Riad, Zaid ibn Shaker, Hafez al-Assad Strength 264,000 (incl. ... For other uses, see June (disambiguation). ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ... ▶(?) (Hebrew לֵוִי אֶשְׁכּוֹל ) (Born Levi Skolnick) (Hebrew לֵוִי שְׁקוֹלְנִיק) (October 25, 1895 - February 26, 1969), was the third Prime Minister of Israel from 1963 until his death of a heart attack in 1969. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... Sde-Boker is an Israeli Kibbutz in the Negev, in the Southern District of Israel, founded on May 15, 1952. ...

Yitzhak Rabin commanded over the sinking of Altalena (Rabin, by Leah Rabin;Putnam Adult, ISBN-10: 0399142177), and allegedly took part in the shooting. His role in the Altalena affair became a central issue among right-wing critics during his second tenure as Prime Minister (1992-1995). For other persons named Rabin, see Rabin (disambiguation). ... The Prime Minister of Israel (Hebrew: ראש הממשלה, Rosh HaMemshala, lit. ...

Sources

• Begin, Menachem (1978): The Revolt, Dell Publishing, ISBN 0440175984, ISBN 978-0440175988 (also available in a 2002 edition translated by Shmuel Katz, ASIN B000TAQ4Y2 ).

  (‎, August 16, 1913 – March 9, 1992) was a Jewish-Polish head of the Zionist underground group the Irgun, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and the first Likud Prime Minister of Israel. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... Dell Publishing was an American publisher of books, magazines, and comic books. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Samuel Katz (Hebrew: שמואל ×›×¥ Shmuel Katz), alias Mooki (Hebrew: מוקי) (born December 9, 1914) is an Israeli writer, historian and journalist. ...

External links

• Jewish National Library
• Photos of Altalena affair anniversaries