The Origins of Israel, 1882–1948: A Documentary History

50. Origins of the Palmach (1941–42)

293 50 Origins of the Palmach (1941–42) During the first half of World War II, the Yishuv faced threats on several fronts. Nazi forces were galloping across North Africa, and Syria and Lebanon had fallen under the rule of the collaborationist Vichy regime. Within Palestine, tensions between Jews and Arabs abated in the wake of British suppression of the Arab revolt, but the Yishuv leadership expected renewed Arab violence. In May 1941, Yizhak Sadeh (see notes 7 and 8) began to organize Jewish fighters into what he hoped would be a small standing military force attached to the larger Zionist militia, the Haganah. This standing force was known as the Palmach, an acronym for the Hebrew words Pelugot Mahats, meaning “shock companies.” Even Palmach fighters were not full-time soldiers; they divided their time between working on kibbutzim and military training and operations. The Palmach was allowed to develop by the British, who needed them in the fight against Nazi and Vichy forces in the Middle East and North Africa. In the 1948 War, Palmach fighters would become the backbone of the Haganah and later, after the creation of the state, the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). ❖ A. Order of the Day No. 81 A period of relative quiet after years of troubles, the establishment of mutual relations with our neighbors, the stationing of a large army in the country, and Source: Appendixes 7 and 9 in Yehuda Bauer, From Diplomacy to Resistance: A History of Jewish Palestine (New York: Atheneum, 1973), 379–81, 385–86. Used with permission of the Jewish Publication Society. the development of the war in Europe and the Middle East have fostered delusions among shortsighted people in the Yishuv as to the value of the role assigned the Organization [The Haganah] as an independent Jewish defensive force. Many imagine that the “spear is only for when it’s needed,” as if it will automatically be there when the time comes. Many are misled and slight the Organization, get caught up in quarrels, resignation, and opposition. The Kofer ha-Yishuv 2 is weakened. The money shortage has caused skimping and cutting down on operations. Even within the organization’s membership, the tension of personal effort has slackened. Thanks to efforts mapped out and directed by the High Command, the Organization has succeeded in reinforcing its main force, even while going through this period of debilitation. The plan for dividing the organization into regional commands has been carried through, preserving and even increasing the effectiveness of the work. Defense plans have been worked out in detail and brought up to a high standard. The level of training has been elevated, progress has been accelerated along with the branching out into special skills. Resources and equipment have developed and grown on a large scale. Enlistments have been carried out that have strengthened the position of the Jewish soldier in the British Army.3 Knowledge of conditions and events in the Arab community has been deepened, as has that on the neighboring states and everything pertaining to the Organization and its interests in general. Systematic contact with members and officers of the Organization has been ramified and reinforced. The approach of the front, the revolt in Iraq,4 the increased activity toward the rebirth of the Arab gangs5 in Palestine, the preparation for attack, the return of gang leaders and men specially trained in a military school in Iraq for the needs of the Palestine “revolt,”6 the activity of a fifth column and of Nazi espionage, the increase of incidents where travelers are injured, shooting at guards and other objectives—all these factors obligate the Haganah to stand tensely prepared, to remain on guard, to be in a battle-ready state. Additional means have now been placed at the call of the High Command, though late and on a still insufficient scale; but, considering our resources, large enough so as not to warrant any additional loss of time. 294 :   ,  ,    Increased mass training and the thorough acquisition of skills Feverish labor to add to equipment and fortifications Completion and execution of plans for local and national defense Improvement of communications Enlistment and training of units for special duties, which may be needed Redoubled activity to bring in the youth, intensify and prepare it General enlargement of the Organization Strengthening of the means of spreading information —These are the urgent tasks laid out by...