Israel, From Terrorist Groups to State Terrorism
September 23, 1999 - 0:0
As soon as World War II ended, the Jewish Agency took measures to drive Britain out of Palestine. In 1945, Hagana conducted some secret military operations, including attacks on Arab villages. In April 1947, Britain announced it will withdraw from Palestine because of overwhelming riots by the Jewish Agency, especially the attacks by `Irgun' against British soldiers and officers. To find a solution acceptable to the Arabs and Jews, Britain referred the Palestinian issue to the United Nations. The UN General Assembly passed the Resolution 181, which called for the division of Palestine into Jewish and Palestinian states.
This resolution was passed under the U.S. pressure, and some envoys accused the U.S officials of political intimidation. The Jewish Agency accepted the resolution, but Arabs rejected it. One day after the approval of the resolution, the Jewish Agency invited all Jews between the ages of 17 and 25 to register in `Hagana' for military service. The agency also started buying weapons from the United States, while the Arab High Committee did not take any military decision; but it asked the Palestinians to go on a three-day strike in protest against the plan to partition Palestine. In the mid December, Irgun and Eshtern (Lahi), which still continued their attacks on the British army, launched major offensives against Arabs including throwing bombs into their stores and people's gatherings on streets.
TheNew York Times, in a report published on December 12 of the same year, wrote: "Today, the Jews showed up again in an offensive mood. About two-thirds of these events are set off by them, and the method used in their operations shows that these attacks were preplanned, something that cannot be seen in Arabs assaults." "Today, 21 Arabs and three Jews were killed, and over 80 Arabs and three Jews were severely wounded," wrote the New York Times in its December 13 issue.
Menachem Begin, who led the Irgun, was proud of those attacks. "Irgun attacked rioters' centers and their aggression bases (he meant the Palestinian cities and villages) for three days from September 11 to 13," he said. "We attacked Haifa, Yafo, Tayereh and Yazar. We attacked Bait-ul-Moqaddas on many occasions...the enemy's casualties were very high," he added. Irgun killed 10 people in its attack on Tayereh, and Lahi struck Arab civilians.
According to a British officer Major R.D. Wilson, Lahi attacked Arab villages in a beastly manner. They did not except women and children and killed them on any occasion. Ben-Gurion proposed a plan for destruction of the transportation of Arabs and public victuals to cities and expressed hope that the people of Haifa and Yafo, which are two major cities of Arabs, would evacuate the city due to hunger.
On December 14, Ben-Gurion wrote: "We can force them to evacuate the city through intense hunger." On January 5, Lahi planted a bomb in a building in Yafo which housed the High Arab Committee, leading to the death of 30 including the Arab refugees who were living in the building temporarily. On the same day, Hagana planted a bomb in Semiramis Hotel in the Arab-populated region in West Bait-ul-Moqaddas, which claimed 26 lives.
While the British government was getting ready to leave Palestine, the Jewish agency practically gained power. In February, the agency began to run the affairs of Palestine by presenting a general plan for government. At this stage, the Zionists embarked on driving the Arabs out of the occupied territories in cold blood. They threatened them and forced them to leave the occupied regions.
On February 5, 1948, Ben-Gurion ordered the Jews to settle in the occupied regions evacuated by the Arabs. Also Hagana shelled the Arab-populated regions adjacent to Bait-ul Moqaddas, forcing many of the Arabs residing there to escape. In February 1948, at the assembly of the central committee of the Mapai Party, Ben-Gurion said: "There is only one way for the Arabs in Palestine - escape." This was Hagana's message: "Escape to save your life." In early March, 1948, Hagana's command headquarter agreed on a series of war plans, which it called plan-D.
The plan-D sought to destroy the Palestinian villages, expel the Arabs and settle the Jews instead. Hagana intensified its attacks on the Palestinian villages, murdered their residents and blasted their houses. Evacuation of the people as the result of the attacks by Hagana and Irgun and Lahi was made for fear of greater attacks. In late March, the majority of the Palestinian residents of the villages on the coastal plains escaped.
On April 6, Ben-Gurion congratulated himself with the following words: "We strongly attacked the Arab guerillas, and villages have been evacuated out of fear -- even one-third of the Arabs in Haifa have fled the city." On April 9, Irgun and Lahi captured the village of Dair-Yasin, west of Bait-ul Moqaddas. A short while after the capture, Irgun and Lahi forces killed 250 civilians.
Irgun took the escapees from Dair-Yasin to Bait-ul Moqaddas in trucks, drove them in the city and, finally, killed them on the same day. (To Be Continued Thursdays)
This resolution was passed under the U.S. pressure, and some envoys accused the U.S officials of political intimidation. The Jewish Agency accepted the resolution, but Arabs rejected it. One day after the approval of the resolution, the Jewish Agency invited all Jews between the ages of 17 and 25 to register in `Hagana' for military service. The agency also started buying weapons from the United States, while the Arab High Committee did not take any military decision; but it asked the Palestinians to go on a three-day strike in protest against the plan to partition Palestine. In the mid December, Irgun and Eshtern (Lahi), which still continued their attacks on the British army, launched major offensives against Arabs including throwing bombs into their stores and people's gatherings on streets.
TheNew York Times, in a report published on December 12 of the same year, wrote: "Today, the Jews showed up again in an offensive mood. About two-thirds of these events are set off by them, and the method used in their operations shows that these attacks were preplanned, something that cannot be seen in Arabs assaults." "Today, 21 Arabs and three Jews were killed, and over 80 Arabs and three Jews were severely wounded," wrote the New York Times in its December 13 issue.
Menachem Begin, who led the Irgun, was proud of those attacks. "Irgun attacked rioters' centers and their aggression bases (he meant the Palestinian cities and villages) for three days from September 11 to 13," he said. "We attacked Haifa, Yafo, Tayereh and Yazar. We attacked Bait-ul-Moqaddas on many occasions...the enemy's casualties were very high," he added. Irgun killed 10 people in its attack on Tayereh, and Lahi struck Arab civilians.
According to a British officer Major R.D. Wilson, Lahi attacked Arab villages in a beastly manner. They did not except women and children and killed them on any occasion. Ben-Gurion proposed a plan for destruction of the transportation of Arabs and public victuals to cities and expressed hope that the people of Haifa and Yafo, which are two major cities of Arabs, would evacuate the city due to hunger.
On December 14, Ben-Gurion wrote: "We can force them to evacuate the city through intense hunger." On January 5, Lahi planted a bomb in a building in Yafo which housed the High Arab Committee, leading to the death of 30 including the Arab refugees who were living in the building temporarily. On the same day, Hagana planted a bomb in Semiramis Hotel in the Arab-populated region in West Bait-ul-Moqaddas, which claimed 26 lives.
While the British government was getting ready to leave Palestine, the Jewish agency practically gained power. In February, the agency began to run the affairs of Palestine by presenting a general plan for government. At this stage, the Zionists embarked on driving the Arabs out of the occupied territories in cold blood. They threatened them and forced them to leave the occupied regions.
On February 5, 1948, Ben-Gurion ordered the Jews to settle in the occupied regions evacuated by the Arabs. Also Hagana shelled the Arab-populated regions adjacent to Bait-ul Moqaddas, forcing many of the Arabs residing there to escape. In February 1948, at the assembly of the central committee of the Mapai Party, Ben-Gurion said: "There is only one way for the Arabs in Palestine - escape." This was Hagana's message: "Escape to save your life." In early March, 1948, Hagana's command headquarter agreed on a series of war plans, which it called plan-D.
The plan-D sought to destroy the Palestinian villages, expel the Arabs and settle the Jews instead. Hagana intensified its attacks on the Palestinian villages, murdered their residents and blasted their houses. Evacuation of the people as the result of the attacks by Hagana and Irgun and Lahi was made for fear of greater attacks. In late March, the majority of the Palestinian residents of the villages on the coastal plains escaped.
On April 6, Ben-Gurion congratulated himself with the following words: "We strongly attacked the Arab guerillas, and villages have been evacuated out of fear -- even one-third of the Arabs in Haifa have fled the city." On April 9, Irgun and Lahi captured the village of Dair-Yasin, west of Bait-ul Moqaddas. A short while after the capture, Irgun and Lahi forces killed 250 civilians.
Irgun took the escapees from Dair-Yasin to Bait-ul Moqaddas in trucks, drove them in the city and, finally, killed them on the same day. (To Be Continued Thursdays)