FALL 2002 AMERICAN VETERANS OF VOLUNTEERS IN ISRAEL’S WAR OF INDEPENDENCE & CANADIAN VOLUNTEERS 136 East 39th St., , N.Y. 10016

VALEDICTORY REFERENDUM AND PAUL KAYE: AVI PRESIDENT’S CORNER SENTIMENT PRESIDENT Should membership in AVI continue to “Do We Get Our Money’s Worth?” Following the three-year old presi- be restricted to those who served in the dential sequence arrangement, Paul War of Independence or should member- In a final effort to collect several delin- Kaye will succeed to the AVI presi- ship be opened to those who served in dency for the year 2003. He succeeds quent 2002 annual dues accounts one Israel’s subsequent wars? The AVI Planning of our regional vice presidents encoun- Eli Bergman who has held the position Committee proposed opening member- during 2002. tered a reaction occasionally raised: ship to the wider group and the Summer The incoming AVI President, Paul “What do we get for our AVI dues?” 2002 Newsletter submitted this question Kaye, is a native New Yorker. After serv- As we approach the dispatch of to the AVI membership. Pro and con state- ing in the US Navy, he was recruited 2003 dues invoices it is tempting to re- ments on the issue preceded a ballot. by in 1947 and served as an spond to that question. As background, Sidney Rabinovich tallied the ballots and officer on the 'Hatikvah'. He was cap- we have not increased the annual dues he reported that 22 had voted against, 12 tured by the British and detained in for 2003. But we do anticipate a mod- voted for and 5 supported tabling the . While being transferred from est deficit created by the global expan- question pending a survey of possible Cyprus to , he and other '' sion of the quarterly AVI Newsletter, candidates for membership. Thus, the pro- members sank the British prison ship, which has become a major ingredient, posal did not carry. 'Empire Lifeguard'. and a welcomed one, in the AVI pro- Ballots were accepted through August Transferred to the Athlit intern- gram. Compared to annual dues for 30 (through September 3 for those over- ment camp, he escaped and served other organizations – Jewish commu- seas). Some ballots of members who had with the Haganah in . He re- nal; veterans; alumni; professional asso- not paid dues were voided. This did not turned to the U.S. and sailed on the apply to Israeli members and surviving ciation; and others in which AVI mem- 'Galila' in 1948. He then joined the Is- relatives of deceased members who are bers are involved, which run as high as rael Navy as a member of the newly dues exempt. In all, fewer than 20% of the $100, our dues are arguably modest. formed 'Seal' unit, 'Shayetet Shlosh eligible members availed themselves of Esray'. the vote. Paul served with the Israel Consu- So what do we receive in return? Voters were invited to return their bal- Foremost is affiliation in a unique or- late during the Six-Day War and the lots along with comments. The comments Israel Defense Ministry during the ganization of men and women who that were collected reflect a sentiment . served as volunteers in Israel’s Indepen- about the organization. Following are He married to Susan Turner in 1997 dence War. We are a band of sisters and some of the expressed sentiments: and, between them they have five chil- brothers who share a precious experi- dren and ten grandchildren. ence. There is no comparable institu- “I was interested to read the AVI Newslet- Paul is a frequent and acclaimed tion in the global panorama of Jewish ter but saddened by the tone taken by the speaker on behalf of Israeli causes. organizations outside Israel. And as writers concerning the Referendum. It is Bernie Marks (First Mate HAGANA and flogging a dead horse to remind ourselves ) put it so emotionally: “For that our numbers decrease but to increase them spuriously makes no sense…When I most of us, there has been no greater was given the possibility of joining the Israeli army I was conscious that this was a privi- experience in our lives.” lege and jumped at the chance. For me there was no other way for a Jew to act. I was Additionally AVI provides periodic only doing my duty and avenging those who died without being able to defend them- opportunities during the year for com- selves as well as securing a possible future for all ... However, just lately when it ing together in the U.S. and Israel to re- finally sunk in that the number of volunteers was only 3-4,000, I was chilled at the pau- member together – to share memories city. This fact made us heroes…Our children are but a small band and they could form, they and their descendants, the most exclusive club in the world: the sons and daugh- of the unique experience – to enjoy ters of Machal…” Mathilde Strassman, Brussels continued on Page 10 continued on Page 2 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

Referendum and Sentiment continued from Page 2 NATIONAL BOARD “…I oppose the motion to open membership to veterans of other wars to be called Machals. We must not change or confuse history. We came to fight for the Jews to have a Home Land after nearly 2000 years. Among us were non-Jews who also died for the PRESIDENT: Birth of Israel…Please do send the AVI Newsletter…” Elihu “Eli” Bergman Sidney Jacobs, London ([email protected]) “…I served in the War of Independence form June 1948 until May 1949, no gun in my hand nor action did I see, bust was attached to Shin Mem 2 intercepting Arab army NATIONAL VICE PRESIDENT: messages, an essential but unglamorous part of warfare, our commander was not less David Kaplan* than Chaim Hertzog, later, of course, President of Israel. I read with interest the arguments leading to your ballot. At a meeting of British Machal not long after the Six-day war a similar proposal was made to us by the VICE PRESIDENT ISRAEL: repr3eentative of the Israeli Ambassador in London. I opposed the idea then as I do David Baum now. My grounds for opposing were very simple. In 1948 not every Jew in the world was a supportive of the State of Israel as they are today, a few of us believed that this was our final chance to survive as a people and nation, we made a contract (unspoken) VICE PRESIDENT CANADA: between us that we would at least show the world that we could no longer let others Jerry Rosenberg decide whether we should live or die. I believe we were special not in a boastful sense, but because we felt we had no other choice. For those that came after us and served Israel in later conflicts, I have the greatest admiration, long may they live and flour- VICE PRESIDENT PUBLIC AFFAIRS: ish…” Sidney Rabinovich Stanley Summers, Thorpe Bay, Essex

TREASURER: “Who are we? When we arrived in Israel we swore allegiance to the State of Israel. I was Sidney Fersht serial number 76490. Ever since I learned of the acronym Machal mean- David Gerard continued on Page16

CHAIR, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: Simon Spiegelman WITH FRENCH MACHAL IN A NEGEV BRIGADE ([email protected]) After the invasion of Poland by the German Army on September 1,1939, the first massacre of Jews in occupied Poland occurred in my hometown Krasnosielc. There, 50 REGIONAL VICE PRESIDENTS U.S.: prominent Jews, among them my father Chaim Himelfarb (of blessed memory), were Eastern: Arthur Bernstein murdered by the SS on the 5th of September 1939, in the town’s . Following Southern: Irving Meltzer this tragic event, my family was expelled by the Germans to the Soviet Zone of occu- pied Poland. Seven months later we were again expelled, now by the NKVD to a family Western: Mitchell Flint gulag at the northern region of Russia. While a refugee in Russia, I volunteered and was accepted as a cadet in the Polish Academy in exile. At the end of the war I PROGRAM DIRECTORS: returned to Poland, and from there, after the Kielce pogrom I left for France. Archives: Ralph Lowenstein In 1948, while studying at the Ort School for Electronics in Paris, war broke out be- tween Israel and the Arab countries. I felt that I could not live with my conscience at Newsletter and Internet: such a crucial time if I did not join the fight for Israel’s independence. I got in touch with Samuel Klausner the representatives of the Haganah in Paris, and was mobilized. As I was a temporary ([email protected]) French citizen, I was put into a unit with Machal (Volunteers from Abroad). I was given to understand that after the war I could return to France and continue my studies. Planning: David Gutmann We spent two weeks in a training camp in Marseilles and were then flown to Israel Speakers Bureau: Naomi Kantey as newspaper correspondents. This was in order to pass inspection by UN personnel. In Local Programming: Bailey Nieder Haifa we were classified according to our individual skills and know-how. I did not mention my technical background so that I would be classified as a “fighter”. I was sent with other volunteers to Kfar Yonah to train with the which planned to rein- *Deceased force the Negev Brigade. Attached to the 8th Battalion of the Palmach, we were smuggled into the block- aded Negev through Beer Yaakov. Our assignment was to guard the water line and Visit the AVI Website to read past issues protect Negev settlements. In the end we were sent to an army post at Bir Asluj. There of the Newsletter were about 80-100 volunteers from France and North Africa in the Negev Battalion, in www.sas.upenn.edu/~sklausne/ a combat unit called –“Commando Francais” under the command of French (non Jew- aviweb.html ish) Colonel Diffre Thadee. (Later he adopted a Hebrew name, Teddy Eytan.) Communi-

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Machal tor of a commercial company I retired but continued from Page 2 still continued to participate in a variety cation and combat commands were in of volunteer activities. I was the initiator French. Some of the men had served in and driving force in helping to establish the “Maquis” (the French resistance move- a memorial on Mount Herzl in ment against the German occupation for Jewish soldiers who served in the Pol- forces) during the World War II. Although ish Armies during World War II. For this, I I had come from France, at that time, I was was decorated with a medal and nomi- not in the “Commando” for a long period, nated to Officer Rank by the Polish Prime and I joined the 8th Palmach Batttalion Minister. I served in the IDF Reserve forces under the command of Major Chaim Bar until I was 55-years old. Lev (later Lieutenant General Bar Lev – IDF Today, I am engaged in helping the Chief of Staff). Subsequently, we were at World Machal Committee in its efforts to army posts (“mishlatim)”, where most of obtain long overdue official recognition the soldiers were Machal and Gachal from the Israel Defense Ministry for the people. Only the commanders were from significant contribution of Machal volun- the Palmach. As there was no common teers during Israel’s War of Independence. language between the French speaking soldiers and their Hebrew speaking com- DAVID SHACHAR manders and, since I knew Hebrew from 116 Uziel Street, Ramat-Gan 52302, IS- my home in Poland, and French from my RAEL Tel/Fax: 972-3-573-2348 stay in France , I was among the few who E-mail: [email protected] Thadée Diffre (aka Teddy Eytan) in center could translate. Subsequently, I went sent to a course Following are excerpts from Chapter 11 of the country during the War of Indepen- for mortar men at Nirim, which Teddy Eytan=s (nom de guerre of Thadée dence. Among the unit’s successes were a had been destroyed during the Egyptian Diffre) book Neguev: L’Héroïque Naissance battle against the Egyptians on the Rafiah- invasion in . I was responsible for de L’État D’Israël (Negev: The Heroic Birth of El Arish road, paving the way for Israel’s a 3 inch mortar (without sights), one of the the State of Israel) published in Paris in 1949. tanks northeast of Beer Sheba, and the de- few mortars in the Negev. This mortar later Diffre describes himself as a French volun- fense of Hill 13 in Jerusalem, now called th contributed significantly in the effort to teer heading a commando unit, the 75 French Hill in honor of the French Com- block the Ouja-Beer Sheba road, blocking Mechanized Infantry battalion.” This was a mando unit. Egyptian reinforcement forces during the francophone machal unit consisting a mix- I returned to on a pressing capture of Beer Sheba. ture of Jewish volunteers from Metropolitan matter. While there I was invited by After the “Ouvdah” campaign (capture France and North Africa. Diffre, himself, was machal to join them in celebrating Rosh of Eilat) which was the last campaign of a member of the French underground dur- Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). At Café the Independence War, I was transferred ing the Second World War and, though a Ginati there was a large gathering of for- to the Communication Corps and was Christian, was drawn to the cause of the eign volunteers. Discussions were in all sent to a refresher course for communi- nascent in the spring of 1948. imaginable languages. What a Tower of cation technicians at near Bnei Prior to the establishment of the state he Babel! The Sephardim had also organized Braq. At the end of the course, I was put served under Yitzhaq Sade, founder of the an event for French speakers and prom- in charge of the communication labora- Palmach. The chapter excerpted is entitled ised wine and cake that assured a large tory of the Negev Brigade at Beer Sheba, “Taking Beer-Sheba” and was translated by audience. Aspirants to the office of the until I was demobilized at the end of 1949. the Newsletter editor. Chief Rabbi spoke and, to my surprise, I Instead of returning to France to con- Zipporah Porath has included his was asked to speak representing the sol- tinue my studies, I went to live in Haifa and name in the list of “Some Outstanding Of- diers. There I was representing Jewish vol- worked at the Navy’s central laboratory ficers” in FOCUS on Israel/ MACHAL -Over- unteers on a platform to the right of the for radar, sonar and other electronic seas Volunteers, a pamphlet published by Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv. I didn=t hesitate. equipment. Later, I volunteered to help the Foreign Ministry’s Israel Information There were hardly any people here who new immigrants in the northern town of Center in May 1999, updated 2000 (ap- would know that I was a Christian and I Kiryat Shemona, teaching young people peared in French in July 1999), available launched into an explanation of OUR ef- electricity and electronics so as to provide at Israel’s Diplomatic Missions. fort, OUR achievements, OUR enthusiasm them with the technical knowledge (www.mfa.gov.il) In the IDF he was pro- for OUR future. It was a great success! That needed to help develop the town. I re- moted to Sgan Aluf = Lt. Colonel. Here’s is to say, since I bore the name of one of mained there for seven years, and then what it says: the twelve Apostles I would have to ad- joined one of companies of the Israel Air- Captain Thadee Difre (Teddy Eytan), a mit it... craft Industries engaged in weapon de- French Catholic, joined the IDF after a long At Tselim, a major council of war met. velopment (‘Gabriel” sea-to-sea missile career as an officer in the French army un- Everybody was here including the higher system). Later, I served in as the rep- der Generals De Gaulle and LeClerc. He es- officers of the department of operations resentative of the Israel Aircraft Industries. tablished the French Commando unit, and of the Southern front, of the 8th and After a number of years as the direc- which took part in the battles in the south 11th brigades, everybody was here. Maps continued on Page 4 3 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

Machal mobile machine guns will enter in front the protective shields down. A dozen continued from Page 3 of an infantry battalion to relive the com- burned down houses are on our right and were everywhere, on the walls, on the mandos. In this way, reinforced by the that was all.. In front of us, white in the dark tables, on the floor; piles of half opened mobile machine guns, and, if necessary, by blue was Beer-Sheba…a little ahead on boxes. Things were passed around quickly the canons the commandos would pro- the dark landscape...In an instant six or amidst an unbelievable swarming of ceed toward the two strong points and eight automatic guns opened fire on us. jeeps, trucks, and feverish activity at ev- attack them while the infantry clears the At the beginning they were a bit high but ery level. Doubtless, an attack was being town and assure protection of their rear. were soon bouncing off the steel plates readied. Another truce was in the offing At 1800 hours aerial bombardment would of our vehicles.. Now the blockhouse was and Beer-Sheba must be taken before it begin and would end at 2300 hours. H clearly visible with white mounds to our begins. Beer-Sheba is the capital of the hour in 23:15. left and right. We approached and dread- Negev. The city is well-situated to control I was placed in charge of the opera- ful shocks threw us against one another. the routes which allow the Egyptians to tion in the interior of Beer-Sheba. I had A dozen grenades fell randomly in front maintain contact with the Arab Legion one extra radio for long distance commu- of us. and the Iraqi army; it is a cross-road for all nication with the General Staff and the — —Everybody down. First company to convoys to Hebron, Jerusalem and the mortar detachment that was ready to fire the right, second to the left and into the ; it is a transit center for north- when ordered. The radio arrived on ditches...The men lunged out of their pro- south traffic; it is a base for the Zeev=s back. He was a big read-head with tective holes flattening themselves under tribes that criss-cross the Negev. Its 4000 a good sense of humor and imperturb- the bullets that whistled on all sides and inhabitants have been evacuated and a able. I placed Dov in charge of the radio. bounced off the sides of the ditches and battalion of Egyptians, supported by rebel (There follows a description of delays in be- they leapt from the ditches and followed groups and some artillery, is garrisoned ginning the attack that had been planned the lead vehicle which had already en- there. for nighttime over a five-hour period. Diffre tered the town. I heard Fernand and This would not be a small matter since feared a massacre were they to attack in Weyler assembling their company...The aerial photos showed anti-tank ditches daylight. At this time only three hours of rapid cadence of the machine guns con- backed by a system of trenches and block- dark remained.) tinued and then the grenades. I quickly houses entirely surrounding the city. Be- It was 0340. We had been stopped for checked the vehicles. In each vehicle was sides, at the center of the city was a for- four minutes with the column taking a driver and a machine gunner. Mission: tress that could accommodate a major cover. Nothing was happening. There was Neutralize the blockhouse by firing di- force and on its southern flank a railway no news of our commander (his name was rectly into it and then patrolling on our station transformed into a citadel form- Israel). The officers around me were be- right flank. The bullets continued to ing bastions that would be difficult to dis- coming nervous. The mission as planned whistle by my ears and surprisingly close lodge. Finally, the city is modern with large now seemed impossible to carry out. The again. I jumped into the ditch where Dov streets at right angles making any house- men became aware of the problem and and Zeev were calling on the radios. It was to-house action dangerous. insisted on knowing what was going on. I 0407 hours. I stumbled over Arab bodies. The first group would include the walked by each vehicle and the atmo- It was not a pretty sight. mechanized battalion 9, a battalion of in- sphere was not good. It was as if they had (Diffre continues a meticulous moment-to- fantry, commandos and two canons a hangover and were restless. Fear is not moment account of the battle and its casu- mounted on armored platforms that had far behind… I decided to present Israel alties. Unfortunately space does not allow been captured by the Israelis. Other with an ultimatum. I do not want to know us to provide this description. Should any- equipment and personnel will be held in what is holding us up and it does not one wish to pursue this engagement and reserve for use as needed. matter. The commandos have received many other significant events in this mem- I am ready for the order for the opera- the most dangerous mission. They will be oir, he or she should try to obtain a copy of tion to begin. All of the forces have arrived taking the greatest risks which they the book. As far as I know there is but one in the south. The reserve units assumed should not do without some copy in the United States and it is in the li- position on the heights which, at a dis- guarantee...At 0350 Israel arrived in a jeep. brary of Ohio State University and is avail- tance of three kilometers to the south and ——Teddy, the hamlet is 800 meters able through inter-library loan. Perhaps west dominate the town. The first echelon northeast. I place the forces at your dis- more copies are available in the is prepared to begin the attack from the position. You may leave when you believe francophone world. Here is the conclusion north. The mobile machine guns are sta- you are ready. Good luck.. of the chapter.) tioned on a knoll in a hamlet a kilometer The breeches of the guns clicked in all Around 1030 hours I was able to pull from the tank traps. The plan is for the of the vehicles. The men shake them- myself together. The French (members of commandos to infiltrate the outer de- selves. The temperature rises. The motors the Israeli force) were pulling out of the fenses entering the town and occupying turn over. We leave. We charge directly town, having collected their dead and the first two blocks of houses... At the into the fields, passing a ridge, then an- wounded and the arms and ammunition same time three tanks of the 8th brigade other and in four minutes are at the vil- that had been abandoned on all sides. The will move in front of the minefields to the lage. Some isolated rifle shots. The forces North Africans, about twenty of the, felt southeast of the town to create a diver- deployed in perfect order. The half-tracks themselves free to pillage. sion. When the first objective is obtained continued without disturbance on their They arrived one after the other with and an access cleared of mines opened way with all heads withdrawn inside and enormous bundles with all sorts of things: Machal continued on Page 5 4 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER continued from Page 4 MACHAL FINLAND women’s underwear, household linens, civilian clothing, crockery, typewriters, Finnish Machal: front row from sewing machines, radios (I counted left Issi Yalowitsch, Berel eleven.), foodstuffs, liquor, eiderdown Silberstein; behind them from left blankets, and so forth. They did not want Jussi Kersch, Theo Salutski, to listen to anyone and categorically re- Bertha Leini, Peretz Wardi,Rafael fused to stop their plunder. They were in- Anker, Mary Davidkin, Harry accessible to pleas, threats or orders. They Millner, Wolf Davidkin, Kaj were no longer soldiers, not even human Ancker. beings. They were dogs around a bone. They would rather rebel than release their prey. I went to the chief officer and asked for orders. . We return to Gevulot where we will rest for several days before return- ing to Beer-Sheba where billeting has been prepared. Leave there when you are ready.. I went to the Chief of Transport and In September 2001, Zacharia Kafka of Karkur, Is- asked him to place his trucks at five-kilo- rael, [email protected], privately published a history of the Finnish machal. In the pref- meter distances along the route. We will ace, he laments that but twelve volunteers from Finland are still alive. At the conclusion he walk. He asked if I was not mad but writes, “The above information is far from complete and in some cases may be inaccurate, obeyed my order. but it is what has been available. This ‘history’ ought to have been written 40 years ago, Reassembling the men. I announced when we were all alive, younger and possessed better memory.” to them that there will be a two-hour The following is excerpted from Kafka’s work. He begins with a sketch of Finnish Jewry. march so they should travel lightly and Between the to World Wars when the Jewish population of Finland reached 2000. During the stragglers will into be picked up. the Finnish-Russian War 1939-40, Jews fought alongside the Finns. Finland joined the Ger- The North Africans fell into the trap and mans in WWII to fight the Russians but Field Marshal Mannerheim refused to enforce the abandoned three-fourths of what they German anti-Jewish legislation. had taken not without furious outbursts During 1947 some groundwork was made for recruiting volunteers from abroad to and curses. The trucks were awaiting us fight for Israel in the war that seemed inevitable. In Scandinavia, camps were put up to at fixed points and in two hours were in give volunteers “agricultural training.” One of the biggest camps was in Denmark out- our rear base. side of Copenhagen and there were also training camps in …In the winter of 1948 Mr. Moshe Finkel, teacher and trainer of gymnastics and sports came from Pales- The conquest of Beer-Sheba coincided tine to Finland in order recruit volunteers to fight in the War of Independence….As a with the beginning of the second truce...It result, 28 young people including four girls enlisted. All of the men had been in the gave Israel control of the Negev, relieved Finnish army, most of them had also been fighting in WWII….Thus, they found the “ba- the fear weighing on the kibbutzim in the sic training’ they were given in the training camps and in Israel rather unnecessary... In south and protected the route for con- Israel most of them had considerable difficulty with the , though they voys to Tel Aviv, disorganized the enemy had studied Hebrew at school. However, all of them spoke and understood Yiddish and and evidenced the end of the shadow German as well as some English, and they managed to understand even words of com- government of Gaza.. The Arab Legion, the mand which sounded very odd in their ears. Iraqi army and the Egyptian brigade at The pleasant surprise was the informality in the army and navy and the good rela- Faluja were cut off from Gaza and from tionship between the officers and their soldiers. While the soldiers in the Finnish army the sea. It created a gulf between them marched in organized columns to the dining room and to the shower, in Sarafand all and Abdullah who needed control of were free to go and eat when they pleased. Hebron while his ally, Farouk, was unable to maintain his eastern front. The opera- Following is a list of Finnish Machalniks along with military occupations: tion cost the enemy 100 dead or gravely wounded and about 400 prisoners of Kaj David Ancker* and Navy which many were high officers, the oth- John Anker artillery officer aboard Kuf 20 and Eilat ers having succeeded in fleeing. For us Raphael Anker navy gunner, later with anti-aircraft at Tel Nof there was one dead and two wounded in Mary Davidkin parachute rigger the Palmach unit that took the railway sta- Wolf Davidkin* Alexandroni Brigade and artillery tion; seven dead and thirteen seriously Issi Baran served on Lebanon front and then aboard Kuf 20. wounded and eight lightly wounded Peggy Baran parachute rigger among the commandos. It was done. Is- Rubin Fiedler* anti-aircraft artillery in Tel Nof and later in Tel Aviv rael was relieved of his command by the Mirjam Hurvitsch nurse in hospital No. 9 in general staff. Hirsch Jalowitsch navy Moses Leib Jarden* Alexandroni Brigade and later aboard Zfonit Machal continued on Page 6 5 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER Machal The second attempt was in May 1947, continued from Page 5 by sea. Three Cape Town Jewish business- men, hoping to establish a Jewish Medi- Zacharia Shlomo Kafka anti-aircraft artillery in Tel Nof and Tel Aviv terranean fishing fleet, acquired a 500-ton Bertha Keini* parachute rigger whaler, formerly a S. African Navy mine- Josef Kersch Alexandroni Brigade and later gunner aboard the Zfoni sweeper. It was renamed “Drom Afrika I”. Shura Maimon* antiaircraft artillery in Tel Aviv Seven young Jewish men, again of various Harry Millner navy aboard Kuf 20 youth movements, were part of the all Marcus Rung* Alexandroni Brigade, later in navy aboard Kuf 20 as cook South African lower deck. Theo Salutskij* navy aboard Kuf 20 It took two months via the Suez Canal Berel Silberstein* navy aboard Kuf 20 as gunner to reach , and was the first ship Moses Strasch* Kuf 20 and merchant navy to sail into Haifa flying the flag of the fu- Jakov Wardi navy and later antiaircraft artillery ture Jewish State, infuriating the British au- Moses Wardi navy and later antiaircraft artillery thorities who would not permit the crew Peretz Wardi* navy and later antiaircraft artillery to land. The ship spent some frustrating Shlomo Zabludowicz* weapons procurement months in the Eastern Mediterranean, a lot of time in dry dock at Alexandria, Egypt. *Deceased She never made it as a fishing vessel. Shortly after the 29th November resolu- SOUTH AFRICAN MACHAL tion, the Jewish sailors were smuggled ashore by men of the Haganah, the first Little is known world-wide, that in and World War II, South African De- group of South African volunteers to reach fence Forces participating were all made up of volunteers. There was no draft, no con- the land. Some Jewish and one non-Jew- scription. Being part of the British Empire they were hardly heard of, but they did play ish pilots flew a number of small civilian a vital role. In the Second World War, Jews volunteered as well, roughly in proportion aircraft from South Africa to Israel arriving to the general white population. Therefore, the tradition of voluntary military service the second day of the new State. When re- was not something new. Even before, Jews had served on both sides during the Anglo- cruiting started in earnest, there was no Boer War (1899-1902). Those serving on the Boer side numbered an estimated 300. shortage of World War II veterans to com- Very likely a similar number on the British side. It is known that some Litvaks stranded mand, organize, recruit and train volun- in England at the turn of the century and anxious to get to South Africa, volunteered teers. Jewish farmers opened up their for the British Army. If they survived, they could get discharged in South Africa. farms for secret week-end training. On the Boer side, some Jews played a leading role. One Slobodka “Yeshiva Bocher” There were three main recruiting orga- Chaim David Judelowitz, became a legendary heroic Boer commandant (Colonel). On nizations. The official South African 28th May 1902, he led his commando in a last ditch stand on the north bank of the League for the Haganah, the flamboyant Orange River against superior British numbers. He was amongst those found lying Hebrew Legion which turned out to be a dead on the battlefield. He was 24 years of age. scam, and the South African wing of the It was therefore not surprising that the highly Zionistic Jewish community, never , which had operated in complete ever numbering more than 120,000, provided proportionately the largest group of secrecy for 12 months, starting about mid- Machal. The community started immediately after the November 1947 U.N. Resolution, 1947. to mobilize their efforts to assist the Jews of the . The writer and many others, who had It was only between the wars that military service was compulsory for 18 year olds, no Zionist movement background, were in what was called the Active Citizen Force. It involved one parade per week, some early recruits of the Hebrew Legion. When week-end maneuvers, and one month per year of full-time training, for four years. Most it broke up, the disillusioned volunteers South African Machal were experienced World War veterans, also a good number, like were mostly absorbed by the Irgun, and the writer, had received their basic military knowledge as A.C.F. trainees in the post- some by the South African League for the World War II period. Haganah. The first attempt to reach Palestine by volunteers was made on 15th December Movements northwards began by 1946. Eight young men, one who subsequently became Mayor of Johannesburg, aged small groups and individuals about 6 18-24 from different Zionist youth movements including , made a valiant attempt weeks before the Declaration of the State in a secondhand former military 3-ton Dodge truck to carve an overland Bet - experienced , Artillery, Radar, route. They got as far as a town called El-Deum in the Sudan. Shortly after leaving this and Tank men, etc. expanding in the town for Khartoum, an unfortunate accident knocked two of them off the truck. Luck- months of June and July, then one Dakota ily, one was not seriously hurt but the other suffered a cracked vertebra and was sent flight per week until about November, to hospital at Khartoum. When the truck arrived, it was sold to have the funds to pay when volunteers were no longer re- for the seriously injured person to be flown back to South Africa. quired. About 3,000 volunteers still in Six of the eight got back to South Africa from Port Sudan, experiencing all sorts of training were left in South Africa, S. A. adventures, including working on a sailing yacht. The seventh was the only one to League for the Haganah recruiting in- reach Palestine in 1947 via Alexandria, Egypt, but almost a year later. He spent two cluded Kenya, Rhodesia, and the Belgian months working on a gold mine near Port Sudan. The others eventually reached Israel Congo. in the Machal groups, serving in various units in 1948. An Air Force Machal psychiatrist at- Machal continued on Page 7 6 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

Machal Jewish baby, a boy, born in Be’er Sheva for cists, teachers, medical secretaries, occu- continued from Page 6 2000 years. pational therapists, laboratory technicians Some South Africans held important and others. By country of origin we have command positions. So important was South Africa 56, France 9, England 7, tributes the South African Jewish spirit the role of a Fighter Squadron Com- United States 7, Switzerland 3, Canada 2, and motivation to the good elements of mander that he received the honour of a Argentina 1, Colombia 1, unknown 1. their Jewish Lithuanian village life, and send-off of four Spitfires, as he left Israel As a reference for further reading on added to this, the openness and frankness to continue with his medical studies in South African Machal, Joe Woolf recom- of the South African European culture. South Africa. mends South Africa’s 800 by Henry South African Machal served in all Many South African Machal inter- Katzew. An edition is available edited by branches of the Israel Defence Forces and rupted their university studies and it is Joe Woolf and may be ordered from Ralph the known breakdown is as follows: known of at least three who had inter- Lanesman, POB 12084 Herzlia 46000 for rupted their medical studies twice to $40 plus $15 for packaging and shipping. General headquarters 6 serve in World War II, and again in 1948. [email protected] Navy 10 Artillery 21 They qualified, being about 10 years older Medical Corps 47 doctors, than the others in their classes. THE CANADIAN 38 nurses, 18 other medical professions and duties, 13 hospi- tal and Seven South Africans died in battle: MACHAL STORY combat Yehezkiel “Chatzi” Berelowitz and Zvi medics 116 “Dedicated to the volunteers for show- Lipschitz fell in Kfar Etzion’s last days, 12th Air Force 49 pilots in- ing us that we are all capable of making the cluding 14 trainees on a pilots course startedin S. Africa, 62 and 13th May. Shoval Kibbutz member world a better place” stands on the title other aircrew including Gideon Rosenberg fell in the Jerusalem advisors and those on command duties, 19 radar, 19 admin- page of The Canadian Machal Story, a Corridor on 16th May serving in the istration and 34 g r ound booklet published by the Canada Israel Ex- Palmach . crew technicians 183 perience with the support of the UIA Federa- Scientific Corps 3 Meir “Matey” Silber, Etzel fighter, fell on tions of Canada and Birthright Israel. The Engineering and Signals Corps 14 25th May defending Kibbutz Ramat Woman Corps 6 CIE is the agency that arranges trips to Is- Rachel. Various Palmach Brigades 30 rael for Canadian Jewish youth. The Spring Pilot Eddie Cohen in the historic engage- Carmeli 1 2002 Newsletter carried a front-page story Alexandroni 10 ment of 29th May, shot down by AA fire of Canadian Machal who accompanied Etzioni 5 as one of a flight of four Messerschmitts 7th Armoured and Infantry Brigade 95 youth on one such trip. Their story is treated which halted the Egyptian advance to- 8th Armoured Brigade 36 emblematically as a model for Jewish wards Tel Aviv. Etzel 3 volunteerism. One should keep in mind that Miscellaneous, including Kibbutz posting, Pilot Leslie Bloch, also flying a this is not material researched by profes- Drom Africa I and II and the overland safari attempt 30 Messerschmitt, downed over the Syrian Subtotal 569 sional historians and so may be lacking in border on 10th July. Kibbutz members, about two-thirds being earlier precision or accuracy. The individual mem- The seventh South African Lou Hack, serv- Chalutzim and one-third coming with general Machal oirs are, of course, clouded by the passing Arrivals 176 ing in the 72nd Infantry Battalion, fell on years. Following are some excerpts from the Subtotal 745 23rd October during a deep penetration Plus about 100 whose units are still unknown100 booklet. raid in the Western Galilee hills. Total 845 The Story Joe Woolf, When does a person truly know they , Israel Hence the title of Henry Katzew’s book are living through a ‘great moment of his- on South African Machal South Africa’s tory? In 1789, did the people of Paris re- Joe Woolf, in an addendum to his ac- 800. ally know they were living through the count of South African machal, provded a Different to the movement of the French Revolution? Or men marching off general accounting of machal in medical American volunteers who were hounded to fight in 1941-did they know that this services. His numbers are based on a publi- by the F.B.I all the way, S. Africans had no would be the ‘Great War’? Furthermore, if cation Kol Hayyal Hazit (Every Soldier is a problems with the authorities, who pro- people did comprehend the significance Frontline). vided everything was kept in a low pro- of the events unfolding around them, the Serving in the Medical corps were 79 file, turned a blind eye to the movements. question would have to be asked, would medical doctors, 3 dentists and 1 About 30 South African married this affect the way they acted at the time? psycholopgist. Classified by country of couples were amongst the 800. Some al- In essence it is these two questions that origin we have South Africa 43, Englland ready engaged brought forward their are the foci of this publication, told 14, United States 7, Chile 4, Argentine 3, weddings. One qualified nurse, deter- through the experiences of seven people Holalnd 2, Canada 2, Belgium 1, Denmark mined to serve, left behind her one year who voluntarily chose to play roles at one 1, India 1, Morocco 1, France 1, Rhodesia old and five year old children with her such dramatic moment of history. Why 1, Switzerland 1 unknown 1. In addition mother and husband. Her dentist hus- Ben Ocopnik, Lou Laurie, Abe Levine, Sam there were 87 volunteers including 58 band arrived a month later. Another Wasser, Harold Kates, Jerry Rosenberg and nurses and 29 inallied medical professions South African nurse delivered the first Joe Warner chose to leave the comfort of such as physiotherapists, medics, pharma- Machal continued on Page 8 7 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

Machal routes from Europe… tence on only ready trained ex-service- continued from Page 7 Initially Ben Gurion dispatched Moshe men was dropped. Once the recruits were life in post war Canada to fight in Israel’s Shertok, the head of the Jewish Agency registered, they applied for passports, had War of Independence is fascinating, par- Political Department, to the United States medical examinations and prepared ticularly because with hindsight we now to meet with sympathetic contacts in the themselves to leave. The route was invari- know the 1948 war did turn out to be a American military. This eventually led him ably via New York and then onto France turning point of history. Their responses to Colonel David (Mickey) Marcus, a West where the ships to Palestine left. and actions reflect great fortitude, cour- Point trained World War Tow veteran, who Most of the remainder of the work age and commitment. As men now agreed to give up his new law practice deals with the volunteers’ own stories. slightly more advanced in years they are and sign on as a military advisor in Pales- Because of space limitations only excerpts entitled to enjoy the reflected glory of tine. This coincided with the establish- from the story of Louis Laurie will be of- past achievements. Yet, for the present ment of the body that would be critical fered here. Copies of the booklet are avail- day reader, these stories should also be a for the promition of the Machal idea, the able through CIE 1-800-567-4772; little troublesome since they are pre- Jewish Agency Committee for Overseas [email protected] sented partially to act as mirrors, challeng- Mobilization. It was this body that ing the reader to see th3emselves con- brought together the elements and ideas Louis Laurie fronting the challenge of any future mo- expressed so far and gave them tangible For the first eight years of his life, Louis ment of history, big or small… form. Laurie thought eh was a Catholic. He had The text goes on to recount the events By January 1948 guidelines had been a Catholic nanny and living in the small of 1947-48, the nature of volunteerism, a drawn up of the volunteer program, co- community in Quebec City, there was only brief and the Yishuv in ordinated between local Zionist execu- a limited amount of Jewishness conveyed the 1940\s, , displaced persons tives in the Diaspora. They would be in- in his French speaking acculturated Jew- camps and illegal immigration and the volved in the recruitment and financing ish family... For a man who would later story of Canadian Jewry during the 1930’s of the local operation yet always answer- volunteer to fight in a distinctively Jew- and 40’s. This is followed by brief discussions able to the committee n Jerusalem. This ish army, his identity would have to be of Canadian and the plight of Jewish refu- line of command was also designed to augmented elsewhere. Most likely, this gees, Canadian Jews and the Second World insure that the other Jewish underground came through his encounter with the War and the history of the War of Indepen- groups in Palestine, the Irgun and the , strong and violent anti-Semitism of the dence 1948. A chapter on Machal: Its For- did not interfere…By the spring of 1948, times. He would walk to school with a bag mation and its Legacy opens with an “Oath the recruiters were hard at wok in most full of stones to defend himself when at- of Machal Volunteers.” No source is given countries where there was a Zionist tacked by anti-Semites. This coupled with for the text of the oath nor do we know how movement: USA, Canada, South American the effects of Jewish friendships, plus a many volunteers took this oath. Its text countries; Britain; South Africa and Aus- Bar-Mitzvah, all helped developed his (American spelling in the original) is, “As tralia. The recruits came from unexpected sense of who he was as a Jew… long as I assist as a volunteer in the War of quarters, including a considerable num- When the ( 2nd World War) was over Liberation of the National of Israel—I ber of non-Jews who were motivated by Louis moved to Montreal, using his newly hereby swear on my word of honor to ac- a mixture of Christian idealism, compas- acquired skill from the forces, but, now in cept unconditionally and without reserva- sion and desire for solidarity with the Jews civilian life, as a news photographer. Cer- tions the rules and discipline of the Israeli after the Holocaust and in some cases tainly things would have continued hap- Defense Forces, to obey all its orders and simply a spirit of adventure… pily with the new career when he received instructions given by the authorized com- (In Canada Ben Dunkelman, a busi- a phone call from two friends to come to manders and to do all in my power, and nessman assisting in the purchase of one of the Machal recruitment meetings even to sacrifice my life in he defense of the weapons for the Haganah) received a visit organized by the Toronto Jewish business freedom of Israel.” form Colonel David ‘Mickey’ man Sam Zaks. By this stage he was back Marcus…Since Dunkelman was already in Quebec City and the meeting was a The Formation of Machal prepared to leave Canada and join the small one…How the recruiters knew that As early as May 27, 1947, David Ben fight in Palestine, Marcus asked him to Louis had been on the combined opera- Gurion had recorded in his diary that the stay a while longer and recruit skilled ex- tions training course was never revealed, Jews needed fully trained foreign volun- servicemen with combat experience. The but it was clear he was seen as a useful teers to assist in converting the Haganah plan was for Dunkelman to lead an En- recruit. For Louis, however important this and Palmach forces into a fully-fledged glish-speaking infantry brigade…Known was, there was also a spirit of adventure army. The key was training so this could Jewish veterans were approached and in the plan, strong enough to make him include British trained Palestinian Jews, meetings were held in private homes. At agree to drop the work as a news photog- but it could certainly mean Jews from this stage the effort was to find ready rapher and sign up to be a fighter in a still overseas... This would appear to mark the trained men. However, Dunkelman soon being formed army thousands of miles beginning f the Machal idea. However, the received permission to leave for Palestine away. Interesting, claims Louis, Quebec idea had already been in operation for where he was to playa major role in the City provided the highest proportion of some time, since the end of the war, with Haganah and then in the Israel Defense volunteers for any Jewish community in the Haganah recruiting foreign Jews to Forces…There were restrictions such as the world. Three people went from a total assist in running the illegal immigration only single men were taken, but the insis- of thirty families… Machal continued on Page 9 8 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

Machal it because I knew I had to go forward. And after I found out he was dead, and we buried continued from Page 8 him the next morning in a grave…It was so sad, this kid was only eighteen years old, had never seen service of any kind, was just a kid looking for something…On the way He then describes his experience in a up, on the bus, he was sitting between Lenny Fine and myself and Saul Freeman. The DP camp where he took the identity of a kid was really nervous. We were all rather nervous because we had no idea of what we Polish woman. He accompanied the DPs were going into. Nobody told us. No such thing as were are going to this point or that, to Palestine arriving shortly after the state just, ‘we are going to take the hill.’…”The early trauma aside, this did not lead Louis to was declared. Ben Gurion awaited them any doubts about whether it had been a wrong course of action. There was one mem- on the dock. ber of the unit who did leave, but the others remained resolved. For some reason, a Within a short while, he had been put returning soldier, Harry Eisner, told Lou’s parents their son was missing, and it took some on a bus and taken to the army base at quick action by the Jewish agency to contact them and reassure them he was fine… Sameria, close to , and suddenly discovered he was in the army! Here he was with one nave man and two from the air force, yet suddenly he was in the army. To be precise, he was in Company B in the 72nd unit of the 7th brigade, often know as the Anglo-Saxons. To cap it all they had absolutely no training. The Sergeant Ma- jor was a fellow Canadian by the name of Julie Lewis, an impressive and well-re- spected commander. Most of the 72nd The following is a poem submitted by Dr. Jacob Ghitis, a South American machal brigade were Americans and many of volunteer who is resident in Israel. He writes, “ Please subscribe me to the excellent them were too young to have served, and Newsletter. Of course I'll be delighted to have the poem published. In fact, since actu- were therefore also untrained. ally the original, in 1949, I wrote in Spanish, perhaps you would be willing to have it Four days after he arrived, Louis saw read for possible simultaneous publication. As I told Zippi, it was the poetic part of a action at a hilltop village ten kilometers trio, which included the Mahalnik and the Israeli. Just as a curiosity: The whole work from Acre, called Tamra. Quite apart from was written in about half an hour, almost automatically, and I was amazed to real- the fact that it was, in a rather abrupt way, ize that it included a poem. When thewhole was published in a local newspaper sev- the moment the reality of the war set in, eral years later, a quite literate colleague said that it was the most beautiful compo- it was also the most remarkable and un- sition in Spanish he had ever read.” conventional type of action for that time, a bayonet attack! Indeed, it was the only one in the whole of the war. The mission THE FURROWS YOU WETTED was being conducted to neutralize the hilltop from where Arab volunteers from You, pitiful remain of history, ragged and wizened you came, the were refusing Fleeing away from miserable ghettos of diabolic memories. to honor the truce and cease their sniper In your pouch, dry crumbs of bread, but of bitterness the dough was fresh. firing. Company B was sent to take the hill- You were sad, you despaired...For working clothes you changed your rags, top. After being held down by enemy fire, And the sadness and the bitterness withered away... they were eventually given the order to Deep furrows had been hewn on your brow, go up with fixed bayonets, both to And now you learned to hew deep furrows on the earth. frighten the Arabs at the top of the hill and You had cried, you were spent, to ensure some sort of protection if the But now your eyes with tears the earth did not wet, need arose. . Fourteen men went up the 'Cause a covenant of toil, and sweat hilltop the village, of which five men were Had been vowed between your brow and the earth! wounded and one killed. Despite these Joyous songs of work sprouted from your lips, significant losses, it was a successful mis- Which were like seeds...And the taste of the fruit was the taste of liberty! sion. Louis Laurie had seen his first piece You were happy, you were free, to work, to enjoy and also to love deep. of action in the War of Independence. In But...Came the war, again the pillage! many ways this moment represented the The enemy was envious of your tillage end of the pure adventure experience and And there he was, in all his might the beginning of confrontation with real And of lead were his insults, and his shouts were dynamite! war. “There was bravado, of course be- To you the furrows were like cubs, and you were like a lion, cause you just go, but the sense when it And your roar was louder than the roar of the cannon! was something really bad was when Defending Israel you fell at last, yet in vain was not your death Sidney Lazar was hit. He was standing up. For from the furrow that a bullet traced in your chest I told him to keep his head down and all A source sprang up...And the furrows you wetted with your blood! of a sudden he fell in front of me and I had to jump over him. I know I didn’t think of

9 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

President’s Corner the world. This is the second edition of case it is his widow Dora. Jaime Lechtman continued from Page 1 AVI’s version of an “International USA of San Jose, COSTA RICA (Infantry) was not one-another as persons who have ex- TODAY.” The purpose of the expanded included in either list. The last time we perienced together. These platforms Newsletter is to provide information on corresponded he was in San Jose, Costa range from the annual Chanukah party Machal-related interests in places Rica. in New York through the Marcus Memo- where a publication does not exist; and That was a nice piece on the HAGANA sailor. She did not know for sure, but the rial at West Point to organized reunions for an interchange in countries that do HAGANA contingent was not consigned from Las Vegas to Jerusalem. Most re- publish Machal newsletters or the like. And it can contribute to an obvious ac- to Cyprus. They were one of the last that cent was the Tribute to U.S. and Cana- were admitted to Palestine. knowledgment that though our mem- dian Aliya Bet sailors by the PALYAM There was one major flaw in the News- berships are declining, we want to know Veterans Association at in letter about which I am particularly con- June 2002. And as we advance in age, more about one-another. AVI has been cerned: On the ballot for the Gutmann these opportunities to bond become all characterizing these activities as the AVI proposal a third option that crept out of the more precious. Legacy, which now is the major ingre- nowhere providing the choice of what in AVI organizes forums and programs dient of our program. effect is a market survey. In our Executive that showcase our experiences, accom- For Machal veterans who are not AVI Committee motion authorizing the refer- plishments, and interests. They have in- members and do not receive the News- endum we approved an up and down cluded our appearance at the letter included in AVI annual dues, we "yes" or "no" vote. There was no option U.S.Holocaust Memorial Museum in are offering the opportunity to sub- for other choices. The goal was to deter- Washington to introduce the late Cap- scribe at a one year introductory rate of mine sentiment on the concept itself, tain Rudy Patzert’s memoir: RUNNING $20.00 equivalent We wish we could without any qualifications or procedural THE PALESTINE BLOCKADE; the Memo- supply the Newsletter gratis; but we issues. And we did not characterize the rial Service for Paul Shulman at the U.S. simply cannot afford to do so. The sub- vote as a "motion" but as a "vote." Those Naval Academy in Annapolis; the Me- scription covers publication and mail- of us who supported the referendum call morial Tribute to Hank Greenspun in Las ing costs; and in most places it repre- were looking for a clear expression of Vegas; and the dedication of the EXO- sents no more than the cost of an preference. The insertion of the third op- tion provides an opportunity for more DUS MEMORIAL at the Inner Harbor in evening at Starbucks, or our favorite(S) waffling on the issue. It flaws the process Baltimore. bistro. because the outcome, whatever it may be, And despite our declining member- cannot provide the clear-cut up or down So this is what AVI delivers for annual ship imposed by demographic realities expression of preference we were seek- dues payments. AVI has embarked on new and exciting ing. And it was inserted without any prior programs designed to reach out to the consultation, nor most important, ap- World Machal fellowship of which we A happy Thanksgiving and Chanukah to proval of the Executive Committee. are the largest member in an effort to you and yours! At this point my suggestion is that we come closer in our declining years, and Eli Bergman drop the whole project for the time be- to showcase and preserve the legacy of ing with the suggestion that those who all of us. wish to pursue it do so at a later date, and Under Ralph Lowenstein’s direction Comment…to the move on with our other business. and the University of Florida’s hospital- Newsletter Editor ity, we are creating an AVI archive as a Eli Bergman repository for documents and other I have just finished reading the online items that provide a resource for re- version of the Summer Newsletter. Again search on the AVI experience; and a Vir- you have produced a first rate product. I tual Museum on a web site that pro- am particularly pleased that the "interna- vides a “roving” museum designed to tional" coverage is announced and pre- We are saddened to announce capture the AVI experience in visual for- viewed. Hopefully as this coverage is es- the death of mat, and link up with comparable activi- tablished and expanded, it will compen- ties of Machal units in Israel and other sate for the ever-expanding obits, which countries in contributing to a global though well written, are gradually and Anstiss Nadler naturally moving to a dominant position panorama of the total Machal experi- in the Newsletter. ence. wife of Nat Nadler of the Exodus In the piece on Latin American mem- September 2002 Sam Klausner as Newsletter editor bership the names of the late Reuben and publisher has expanded the AVI Margolis and Schmuel Schiller (MEXICO - Newsletter to include coverage of ac- 20 Courrier Place - EXODUS) do not appear. However they Rutherford, NJ 07070 tivities, vital statistics, events, and con- are included in the Latin American roster tributions of Machal units throughout compiled for the Newsletter. In Reuben's

10 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

On parachute rigging… days after my wed- letter and comments ding, I was ordered to fly to Czechoslovakia To the Editor: with three or four I enjoyed another surprise in the pub- other candidates to lished communication from Stanley take special courses Medicks, Coordinator, British & European in , espio- Machal Association. Mr. Medicks stated nage, guerilla warfare, "The man who commanded and who and paratroop tactics. wrote its first training manual was Tom (Keep in mind that I Bowden, known in Israel as Captain Appel. already had over 150 He was not Jewish and as an ex U.K. First parachute jumps at Airborne Division he gave Israel his exper- that time.) Among my tise," Tom Bowden now becomes the third companions was Ben man who started the Israeli Paratroops. It Foreman (from the kind of reminds me of the stories about Exodus), an English Guests at wedding of Robert Leeds and Peggy Baran, Tel Aviv, who shot down that airplane. . . Paratroop veteran, July 1948 At the AVI convention in Las Vegas the and two or three Israelis, including two representatives of Israel spoke of the Shimshone Nuemon (a singer), Don Avni, "first airborne parachute jump", if Eddy "Russian" who first trained and com- and Guri Gurfinkle, a politician's son, Kaplansky was the pilot, he will confirm manded the Israeli Paratroops. I then pro- (Don't hold me responsible for the spell- that there were only three paratroopers duced for them dated official Israeli Air ing of their names!) I have excellent pho- on that historic occasion, i.e., Ben Fore- Force photographs showing Ben Fore- tographs of our group taken at a former man, Bernard Marks, and myself. man, Bernard Marks, and myself standing Nazi SS camp in the Sudetenland. You After the fall of , strange in the doorway, about to make the first should be able to verify the occasion be- people began showing up at the base and "mass" paratroop jump. At that time I must cause we were on the Lockheed Constel- there seem to be no chain-of-command. I have been suffering from delusions, be- lation that crashed at Zatec in July 1948. think at that time we suddenly had more cause I thought I was commanding the Our "trainees" turned out to be 16, 17 officers than enlisted men. My status was Israel's First Airborne unit. Let me take you and 18 year old survivors of Europe's con- changed from "Air force" to "Army" with through the events I thought I partici- centration camps. Upon completing the an appropriate (and substantial) wage pated in. training, Israel's First Airborn Brigade (size decrease. After an additional month my In Israel's first "International Event" being a joke among us) was transported name disappeared from the payroll en- (check the stories and pictures in the Is- back to Israel where we set up on top of tirely. It seemed apparent that no major raeli newspapers of July 4, 1948) I married Mt. Carmel in Haifa. Ben Foreman and I conflicts would occur and I requested my a Finnish volunteer (Peggy Baran). At that went to Jerusalem and to some other lo- release and for Peggy & I to be returned time I had been given a school and was cations to recruit paratroop volunteers. I to America. In December 1948, we were training parachute packers during the day think that is where we recruited Bernard moved to a special section in a prisoner- while flying with the Primo Squadron out Marks (You can also validate this story of-war camp to await our transportation. of Tel Aviv, as a bomb chucker at night. with Bernard. I believe he is still living in I was in that camp when I heard that the On or about July 7th I was summoned Cincinnati.) After getting the training Israeli Airborne was conducting a mass to Army Headquarters and interviewed camp functioning, I was ordered to di- parachute jump and one paratrooper's about the values of Israel having Para- vorce myself from the day-to-day opera- parachute had snagged on the plane's troops. I presented a strong presentation tions and to prepare a training manual. I rear wheel. They landed with him hang- for such a force. did this and ing there. So much for their subsequent Because of the as far as I training. As for the Russian Commander Arab's lack of know, it was the Israeli consul says was first, or Tom good training, I the first Bowden alias Captain Appel (wait. . are felt then that a training they sure it wasn't Captain Marvel?), I'll special para- manual of match dated data with any of them and if troop force the Israeli I didn't write the first training manual and would be the Airborne. I command the first Parachute Israeli Regi- most effective think I still ment and training school, I'll be the first resource Israel have my to take my name off the long list! could have. I original Regards, made my points notes for First Graduating class of Israeli parachute packers and then left. the manual. Robert X. Leeds trained b Robert Leeds, Bet HaPoel, Tel Aviv, 1948 Three or four As for the letters continued on Page 12 11 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER LETTERS TO THE EDITOR CONTINUED P.S. My new book, Love Is A 4 Legged Word The story of efforts to establish a fight- to GHQ Israel Army” dated August 23rd has just received its second nomination ing Israeli paratroop unit in the War of In- 1948, by three officers participating in the as "Best Book of the Year." dependence is one of false starts, hasty course; Shimshon Neuman, Yaacov decisions, mistakes and poor judgement. Vidislavsky and Shmuel Kreiner. An ap- Robert Leeds enclosed a number of photo- It is anything but a success story. The ac- pended roster giving age, nationality and graphs, including one of him exiting a Da- count of Robert X. Leeds in his three-part number of jumps for each of those still kota for a parachute jump. Two of the pho- article in 1999 and 2000 AVI Newsletters, with the course then, credits 21-year-old tographs are reproduced here. He also sent combined with his indignant reaction to Bob Levy with 69 jumps; not 150 as Leeds a training syllabus for a parachute training Stanley Medicks’ letter, is only part of the now claims. Next comes 48-year-old course and a manual for a parachute tech- overall story and less than a pillar of his- Chaim Cahane, the oldest of the group by nicians’ school both prepared by himself in torical accuracy. far, with 19 jumps. Ben Foreman, a 20-year- Israel in 1948. He also included certificates Leeds was then known as Robert “Bob” old veteran of the US Army’s 82nd Para- of flight training at the Gromov Flight Re- Levy, and so named in archival documents troop Division, is credited with nine jumps. search Institute at the Zhukovsky Test base I’ve referred to. As we shall see, he was in- Some of the Israelis were WW2 British in Russia. The certificates attest to his train- deed actively involved in parachuting Army veterans, who had been trained to ing in the SU-30 fighter jet, MIG-25 strate- during his Israel Air Force (IAF) career and be parachuted behind German lines. gic interceptor and MIG-23 fighter jet. Space apparently did jump from a C-46 with Ben The same trio submitted two more re- prevents presentation of these documents Foreman and Bernard Marks. Some of his lated reports on August 23rd, one propos- here but they will be available from the AVI other assertions, however, are certainly ing the establishment of an “Independent archive at the University of Florida. not beyond dispute. Parachute Battalion” and the other the On June 3rd 1948, over a month be- establishment of a “Parachute School in To the Editor: fore he and Ben Foreman left for the Israel.” Neuman, Vidislavsky and Kreiner Everything that I read in Leed's letter course in Czechoslovakia, they and 13 likely prepared the reports on their own to you is true to my knowledge. other IAF personnel were ordered trans- initiative, as the IDF apparently forgot to BothLeeds and Foreman trained in ferred to Ramat David to organize a para- appoint anyone as officer in-charge of the Czechoslovakia and Leeds set up the first chuting school. Appointed “responsible course. parachute loft for airing, packing and re- for the school” was Arthur Landman, an In the wake of the Czech course came packing parachutes. Leeds was an expert obvious inappropriate choice as he was the establishment of a new parachute parachute man. Leeds and Foreman set later reportedly expelled from the Czech unit on Haifa’s Mount Carmel, as Leeds up the the paratrooper school. course for refusing to jump. Ironically, his tells us. Veterans of the unit, who refer to Leeds arranged for a DC 3 so that Rob- was the first appointment to a ‘command’ it a Battalion, Brigade or Division, have it ert Leeds, Ben Foreman and myself could position in an Israeli parachuting project. that its Officer Commanding was Yoel make the first Israeli "mass" jump. Photo- The decision for the Ramat David Palgi - then a local folk hero of sorts. This graphs were taken of that incident. project was obviously a hasty one, as it is supported by documentary evidence, The Israelis must have been anxious to was soon shelved in deference to the but contradicted by Leeds; in the final part make it an all Israeli outfit so they made it course in Czechoslovakia. The Czech of his AVI Newsletter article (January 2002, unbearable for Leeds and Foreman to stay. course began on July 15th with eight of- page 11), he states in no uncertain terms Naturally their pride was tested and they ficers, among them Ben Foreman and Bob that “I was appointed (its) Commanding resigned. Levy, and five others from Israel plus “28 Officer.” A short time later the Israelis con- local volunteers.” Instruction and training A memo dated September 11th 1948, ducted a mass jump and managed to was given by Czech Army officers and ostensibly by the “Officer Commanding Is- screw it up--getting one trooper snagged NCOs. Parachuting was only one of the raeli Airborne Unit,” authorizes a para- on the rear wheel. They also got him killed! course’s comprehensive 15-item curricu- chute jump on the 13th by “Robert Levy, (So much for Israeli expertise) lum. Ben Foreman and Bernard Marks.” It is not The course was soon divided into two signed by the un-named “Officer Com- Yes, I would say that Robert Leeds is the parts, the Israeli officers and the 34 other manding,” but rather on his behalf in father of Israel's airborne. ranks, at the request of the officers “so as these words; “by Ben Foreman, Bob Levy to enable them to receive speedier and TRAINING COMMAND.” If Levy was indeed Respectfully, more advanced training.” Bob Levy and O/C og the “Israel Airborne Unit,” surely Bernard Marks Ben Foreman “are specializing in the tech- he would have signed the memo as such. August 10, 2002 nical part of parachuting; parachute pack- In any event, the memo was appar- ing, and dropping of equipment and sup- ently promptly acted upon by the pow- plies and their packing and stowing in air- ers-that-be in their haste and anxiety to DF PARACHUTING ACTIVITIES in 1948/49 craft.” Dan Avni was appointed “officer in create a fighting paratroop unit. On the Inspired by Robert X. Leeds’ account. charge” of the 34 other ranks. same day IAF commander Aharon Remez By Eddy Kaplansky, Haifa This and more is detailed in a report issued a corresponding jump order to IAF © September ?2002 letters continued on Page 13 12 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER LETTERS TO THE EDITOR CONTINUED

Operations. The next day saw a message 46. However, the plane didn’t land “with as a Machalnik, ‘Appel’ made a written de- from Yigal Yadin, IDF Operations head, au- him hanging there” as Leeds states. What tailed proposal to the IAF’s Chief of Staff thorizing a drop “today” by Levy, Foreman happened is that after a number of un- to create a “small efficient paratroop force and Marks. There was also a memo from successful attempts to untangle the of section or platoon strength.” Although IAF Operations to Air Transport Command chute, the pilot flew low over Haifa Bay at eminently qualified to implement his pro- (ATC) stating that the jump has to take minimum safe-flying speed to allow the posal, it was apparently shelved due to place “today, September 13th, between parachutist to release himself and drop the imminence of the already decided 0700 and 0900 hours.” into the sea. This he did, but was never upon course in Czechoslovakia. That was When the three arrived for the jump, seen again. most unfortunate, as otherwise a proper however, ATC seemed unaware of the or- Leeds may have already left Israel by IDF paratroop unit would very likely have der, probably due to its preoccupation December 18th, when another parachut- been created in ample time to have seen with Operation Dust - the airlift to ist, the last to jump in a stick of 10, was action in the War of Independence. Ruchama behind enemy lines. Thanks to killed after his chute failed to open be- The “Englsh Paratroop veteran” men- the intervention of Harold Green (USA), O/ cause the release line had come loose tioned by Leeds was probably Bert Faigin. C of IAF Training and Instruction Branch, from the snap hook attached to the Another possible reference to Faigin ap- it appears that the jump took place the Dakota’s static cable. This seems to have pears in a pilot’s log-book entry for De- next day; presumably from one of ATC’s put a damper on further parachute train- cember 13th 1948, which records that the C-46 cargo planes. The apparent ‘one-off’ ing drops, as only a few sporadic jumps “English instructor” had been in the Brit- event was very likely Israel’s first para- occurred during the weeks following the ish Army’s 2nd Airborne Division. chute jump, and Bob Levy was undoubt- end of Operation Horev on January 7th So who has exclusive right to the title edly ‘in command’ of the trio. 1949. “Commander of Israel’s First Parachute ‘Exodus-1947’ veteran Avi Livney, a By April 1949 a decision was taken to something,” and of what value is it? No- crewmate of Marks and Foreman on that create a completely reorganized para- body but Robert X. Leeds seems to think legendary Aliya-Bet ship, recalls his friend chute unit and school, which in due it’s worth claiming, whatever its value. Foreman telling him in the early 1950s course was established at Ekron. By mid- A former RCAF and IAF pilot, Eddy that he and Levy recruited Bernie Marks - August it was actively training for its first Kaplansky also served on the Hagana’s actually “talked him into it,” although he live jump. This occurred on September 4th Aliya-Bet ship ‘”Jewish State” (Northland). had no prior parachuting experience. 1949, when 14 trainees and instructors He is a long-time resident of Israel and an There is no record of further jumps jumped from a Dakota piloted by me. It active researcher of Machal-related as- until October, when the airborne unit held was my only flight of its kind ever. pects of the War of Independence. His e- a “mass” jump. French Machalnik Fernand In command of the new unit was mail address is; [email protected]. Beyrard, then the unit’s Operations Officer, Gershon Yuval, a WW2 veteran of a British states unequivocally that its school at S.A.S. parachute unit. His deputy was Tho- Ramat David was “managed by a group mas Derek Bowden - better known at the of ex-Soviet Parachutists.” It seems that time as David Appel. It is noteworthy that Leeds may have been rather hasty in dis- only one of its nine officers, Chaim missing out of hand what the Israel Con- Cahane, had participated in an earlier sul said about a Russian having been the parachuting unit or course. It was indeed “first” to train Israeli paratroops. Bowden who wrote its training manual, The unit’s first jump, on October 23rd, as Stanley Medicks wrote in his recent let- was a festive event. The attending digni- ter It apparently supplanted the manual taries included David Ben-Gurion, then Leeds says he wrote earlier. From the re- Prime Minister and Minister of Defense. organized unit at Ekron finally emerged Having been a flight of over two hours Israel’s first battle-ready parachute unit, duration, some 20 parachutists probably unfortunately much too late for the War jumped from the Dakota. Levy, Foreman of Independence. and Marks may well have been among Certainly no credit to Leeds is his un- them, although there is no indication that seemly reference to Bowden, whose in- such was the case. credible WW2 record as an officer in the There were two more drops on No- British Army’s First Airborne Division is vember 5th, one with 32 parachutists, and well documented. Machal veterans who another the next day - all from C-46 air- served under him in the 7th Brigade, craft. The jump Leeds tells us he heard fondly remember ‘David Appel’ as an in- about before returning to the USA sounds spiring commander of the ‘follow-me’ like the one that occurred on November kind. 16th when a parachutist was killed after Much less known is that on July 4th his parachute snagged on the tail of a C- 1948, not long after he returned to Israel 13 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER THE MUSEUM OF THE proportionally large number of fallen.combatants" he said. JEWISH SOLDIER IN "The memory of the WWII Jewish sol- WW2: NEW WW2 dier has been lost." said Dr Melvin Polk, MUSEUM IN ISRAEL American representative on the museum's board , "...I never realized that September 4, there were 41 Jewish admirals and gen- From every corner of Israel they came erals. There's a loss of memory of what - surviving Jewish warriors of the war Jews did for the United States." against the Nazis; veterans of the Allied The museum will highlight decisive forces and of underground resistance battles of the war and the part played by movements and the partisans who fought Jewish commanders and soldiers. In- in the forests behind the German lines. cluded will be the defense of Moscow , the They came to witness the ground-break- North African campaign, the battles for ing ceremony of yet another museum, this Stalingrad and Kursk, the Normandy land- one, the Museum of the Jewish Soldier in ings , the Ardennes and the battle for Ber- W.W. II, to be amidst the vast IDF Armored lin. The victory in the Battle of Britain Corps' collection of battle tanks, armor and the air - war of the R.A.F. and United When an armored truck and memorabilia at Latrun, reputed to be States Air Forces in which many Jews served as a tank the largest exhibit of its kind in existence. served and gave their lives is not men- The Yad Lashirion (IDF ) tioned in the literature of the planned Memorial, established 20 years ago, initi- museum. Considering that these veteran ated the move to establish a museum to aviators contributed their vital experi- SAM PIVNIK, honor the Jewish soldiersof WWII and ence - some gave their lives - in Israel's War ENGLISH MACHAL: named it accordingly. It offered space in of Independence ,should ensure the FROM AUSCHWITZ its own Latrun complex in the Ayalon omission not be permanent. Not men- Valley about half-way between Tel Aviv tioned too, the Pacific theater will no TO TANK and Jerusalem. It will overseer building of doubt be given appropriate exposure. COMMANDER the museum. While the project is sup- The Ayalon Valley since time immemo- ported by the government contributions rial has seen many fateful battles of an- Sam Pivnik was deported to are solicited from Jews everywhere. The cient history. Here Joshua Ben-Nun Auschwitz in 1943 from Benzdin, Po- site itself symbolises the heroism of the waged war against the Amorite kings; at land along with his family. He and one Jewish people. nearby Emmaus Judah the Maccabi de- brother survived and worked for the A choir of WW2 veterans under feated the Antiochus general Gorgias occupation forces in the French zone Vladimir Krasnitzki rendered nostalgic driving his army to the sea and here the of Germany after which he joined songs of the War and the Russian immi- IDF's 7th Brigade battled to relieve relatives in England. This is his story. grant attendees, conspicuous - bedecked beseiged Jerusalm in the Independence In the spring of 1948 I left to fight with their profusion of campaign medals, War. The area was recaptured from the for a Jewish home in Palestine…I saw appeared to be the majority. Short Jordanian army in the Six Day War. a good deal of action and we liber- speeches given by some, including cabi- The IDF's Armored Corps fought deci- ated Zish and in the Galilee. net minister Natan Sharansky, chairman sively here and in all of Israel's wars and One day my tank was hit by a cannon of the Ministerial Committee for the Mu- this site was chosen to commemorate its on the right side…One South African seum and others, were delivered in both fallen comrades. The fact that Jews includ- comrade was killed and another of Russian and Ivrit. Sharansky charged offi- ing the Jewish Brigade of Palestinian Jew- our crew had his leg blown off. We all cial Soviet anti-Semitism fueled the ca- ish volunteers, had served in all the fight- suffered minor injuries but had the nard that Jews were cowards who didn't ing services of the Allies and in the Mer- satisfaction of knowing that the Syr- participate in the war. "...On the other chant Marines was a decisive asset in the ian army was defeated…I was in an hand the reality of statistics published establishment and defence of the State Anglo-Saxon brigade and remember later, showed that Jews were among the of Israel from 1947 until the present day. the names of two of my comrades, most heroic of nations, in the number In this, the idea - long in gestation - of the Hershel Margulies and Max Wolinski. who died relative to the population. So it museum and a monument , had its gen- When the other soldiers in the bri- is natural that this should be part of Jew- esis. gade wanted to return to England the ish history and pride." The museum will The monument is to be in the form of cry was, we’re going home.’ I also re- be dedicated to teaching the true story a World War Two underground bunker turned to England but I carried with of Jewish valor in that terrible war. The inside of which the story of the heritage me the pride of having fought for the President, Moshe Katzav paid tribute to and acts of bravery of the Jewish fighters country of my own people. the one-and-a-half million Jews who will be shown. A visual panorama of WWII served in all the Allies fighting forces and is to greet the visitor upon entering. It will in particular to the 250,000 who died in house sophisticated equipment to combat. "No other people gave such a present and illustrate the story of this continued on Page 15 14 FALL 2002 - THE AVI NEWSLETTER

Museum continued from Page 14 ADRIAN PHILLIPS: chapter of our history and data bases for “BLOCKADE BUSTER” those who wish to study it in depth. The museum will be built alongside the bun- Adrian Phillips, a graduate of the City College of New York and vet- ker. eran of the U.S. Merchant Marine volunteered for the ‘secret fleet’ in Before the stone-laying ceremony 1947. He would be assigned to run the British blockade of Palestine. In began the leaders of all the WWII veter- Baltimore, he joined the crew of the President Warfield which set sail ans associations assembled in the ar- for Europe. Like other volunteers, he was cautioned; “if the British catch mored corps memorial auditorium to sign you, they’ll hang you”. a scroll. This would be buried beside the Recalling the neglected condition of the future “Exodus,” he says “I corner-stone of the new building, some- grabbed a handrail on entering the ship and it came off in my hand; what analogous to a time-capsule for the and as I kicked to check the steel boiler support, my foot went through edification of future generations. Smokey it”. They attempted to sail the ship out, but they almost sank off Cap Hatteras and they returned to Simon, chairman fo World Machal, was port. Phillips was reassigned to another ship before the President Warfield left for its fateful voyage. one of the signatories. Phillips’ new ship was another U.S. Coast Guard veteran; “Trade Winds” renamed “Hatikvah”. The Building is expected to take two years, ship picked up 1500 Holocaust survivors in Europe and was captured by the British off the coast of ultimately cover an area of 1400 square Palestine. The passengers and crewmembers were imprisoned on Cyprus for three months, during meters and cost approximately six million which Phillips escaped from the camp, but was recaptured. The prisoners were transferred to a prison ship, the Empire Life Guard sailing for Haifa. As the vessel sailed into the Haifa Harbor, explosives, U.S. dollars. Minister Sharansky said the which had been smuggled aboard, were used to sink the ship. The refugees barely had time to government is committed to contributing make a run for the pier before the explosives went off. Along with several other American crewmen, 16 million shekels ($3.4 m)over the next Phillips was held responsible for the sabotage by the British. four years. Chairman of the museum, Zwi Adrian Phillips was interned in the Athlit Camp along with other crew members; of whom 26 Kantor, commenting on the purpose of were Americans. Most of the crewmembers were released early soon after, including the skipper, the museum, said. "We were always Sidney Yellin, in the British attempt to avoid an international incident over the American prisoners. taught the basic knowledge of the Holo- caust focusing on the victims 'who went Adrian and two other New Yorkers (Herman Braverman and Michael Weiss) continued to be held in like sheep to the slaughter', but they Athlit without being charged. didn't teach us that from a small nation Adrian’s mother, Rose Phillips, launched a one-woman campaign from her home in the Bronx, of 18 million, one-and-a-half million New York. She contacted newspapers, State Department officials, and congressmen and fought in- fought against the Nazis. It's important trepidly for the prisoners’ freedom. After a lengthy battle, in Palestine and in the US, her son returned that there be one place in the world that home. Adrian had met a young woman among the holocaust survivors in Athlit, Gerda Gottesman. can reveal the true story of the Jews be- Seven years later they married. tween 1939 and 1945." During his imprisonment, Adrian Phillips wrote to his mother “ Please keep up your courage; the Sol Jacobs worst is behind us, and that goes for all the Jews.” Note: Some 300 American and Canadian Volunteers served with Palestinian Jews who came as part of the “Palyam” to bring “illegal” Holocaust survivors to the shores of Palestine. The 10 largest ships origi- Ramat Gan nated in Baltimore, USA. Si Spiegelman

SONG OF THE VOLUNTEERS

The text of the Song of the Volunteers was printed In the AVI Newsletter Winter 2001. At the time neither the authorship nor the text were clear. We have since determined that the lyrics were written in August 1948 by Aaron Baranan, Louis Cohen, Brenner from England and Max Kampler. Baranan can be reached at 5030 Rebel Trail, N.W., Atlanta, GA 30327.

All you sons of Moses, On the desert sand, Once again Our Own, With your crooked noses, Fighters, hand in hand, Our long forsaken Home, Fight, Fight, Fight for Israel. Build, Build, Build for Israel. Live, Live, Live for Israel. All you sons of Jacob, With our sweat and toil, Here at last we’re free Join the Star of David, We reclaim our soil, To forge our destiny Fight, Fight, Fight for Israel Build, Build, Build for Israel. Live, Live, Live for Israel. Brothers, Brothers, Victory is Brothers, Brothers, wherever you Brothers in Courage helped create in Sight. may be, our State. Forward, Forward, Onward with Come up. Join us, in our Liberty. Brothers in Freedom will always the Fight. Years and Years we’ve waited keep it great. Years and Years we’ve waited, Now our State’s created. Years and Years we’ve waited. Now our State’s created, Build, Build, Build for Israel. Now our State’s created Fight, Fight, Fight for Israel Live, Live, Live for Israel.

Sung to the tune of ‘Song of the Vagabonds’ from ‘The Vagabond King’ by R. Friml

15 Referendum and Sentiment REPORT FROM RALPH LOWENSTEIN, continued from Page 2 AVI ARCHIVIST ing volunteers from abroad, and then see- These are the pertinent facts about our AVI archive and Machal Virtural Museum. ing American Veterans of Israel heading -- The University of Florida Libraries is the official host for the and Machal Archives. our organization, I have been disturbed. The archives are located in my office and in Special Collections at the University of Florida I feel as Jews and some gentiles, not Libraries in Library East. Carla Summers of the library staff and I are archivists. only did we defy our nation of birth by -- The University of Florida Foundation, a 501 (c) 3 organization, is the repository for the Machal taking up arms for Israel, we were consid- Fund, which supports all our archival activities. This fund now has approximately $9,000 in it, ered traitors to our respective countries. with copies of wills assuring the Machal Fund of an eventual $70,000 endowment, which May I say, as a British subject, arriving at should support the maintenance of the archives after we are all gone. We estimate that it will Dover Customs enroute to Israel June cost $200,000 to complete our proposed projects. 1948, I was humiliated, searched and These include: threatened, and told we will get you when 1. The building of an Aliyah Bet and Machal Virtual Museum on the Internet. Phase I of this you return referring to Israel as project has now been completed.Phase two will include the fleshing out of all areas, the Palestine…So why are we so proud to in- completion of rosters, scanning of all photos, links, bibliography, etc. clude the nation of our birth in our orga- 2. The filming and taping of about 25 select oral histories. These oral histories will become nization heading? Simply, we are nothing part of the archives and will also beincorporated in the virtual museum. more than World Machal from the 3.The completion of a data base, including all the information from about 400 detailed ques- Diaspora…” tionnaires that I have collected from Aliyah Bet and Machal veterans over the last 15 years. Sidney Firth, Plymouth Meeting, PA There are 52 questions in each questionnaire, including place of birth, parents' religious and Zionist affiliation, dates of service, units, etc. Design and construction of the data base was “…in the unlikely event that the younger completed in the last two weeks, and my student assistant is already beginning to type infor- veterans would be interested in joining mation from the questionnaires into it. This material will be invaluable for future historians. AVI, I would favor expanding the mem- 4.Proper identification and storage of hundreds of photos and documents. Each photo must bership but retaining a distinct Machal be placed in its own acetate folder and clearly identified. This is an expensive task, and I am group under the umbrella of the AVI.” still collecting and copying photographs, another expensive project. Leon Reinharth, New York 5. The proper storage and identification of AVI organizational documents, minutes, newslet- ters, etc. “All things have a normal cycle and life 6.Working with the Price Library of Judaica (almost 100,000 volumes) in the UF Libraries to span including AVI. Instead of perpetua- see that we have all books related to Aliyah Bet and Machal. tion memorialization through the ar- Thus, our project has two main arms: a) The virtual museum that can be seen all over the chives and Israeli government recogni- world and represent the link between American and Canadian Jewry as well as Machal volun- tion and remembrance.” teers from other countries and the State of Israel from its birth, and b) the Library archives, Ellis Robins, Wellington, FL which will preserve detailed information, photos and documents about Aliyah Bet and Machal veterans for future historians. If AVI is successful in its fund-raising campaign, it hopes to ex- “…if subsequent IDF volunteers want to pand the virtual museum to include all elements of World Machal, so it is truly a museum join, it is OK with me. Perhaps they can memorializing the worldwide volunteer effort to serve on Aliyah Bet ships and serve in the help Israel in future years.” Israeli military forces during the War of Independence. Aaron Baranan, Atlanta Foundations and individual donors should understand that we have a very narrow win- dow of opportunity to get material from the veterans themselves. I am 72 years old, and I am “Volunteers or not. Participants in Israel’s the second-youngest American. wars are worthy. They risked their lives All contributions are fully tax deductible. The UF Foundation, an official fund-raising arm and fought bravely…Let them in!” of the University of Florida, will acknowledge contributions, and major contributors will be Marvin Weiss, Branford, CT listed prominently in our virtual museum. They might want to know something about me, since I am officially listed as archivist and “…I feel that 54 years after, the AVI need director of the virtual museum, in addition to being chairman of the AVI Research and Ar- not seek self-preservation and that we chives Committee, and also administrator of the Machal Fund: Ralph Lowenstein is a native of should fade into history…” Danville, Virginia. He volunteered for the Israeli when he was 18 yearsold, seeing combat with Mort Levinson, Hillsborough, CA the 79th Armored Battalion only 10 days after arriving in Israel in 1948. He holds B.A. and M.S. degrees from Columbia University and a Ph.D. from the University of Missouri. Lowenstein also served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, from 1952 to 1954. He was a prize-win- ning reporter for the El Paso Times, and has taught at the University of Texas-El Paso, Tel Aviv University, the University of Missouri and the University of Florida. He was chairman of the News-Editorial Department at the University for Missouri, and was dean of the College of Journalism and Communications at the University of Florida for 18 years. He was president of the organizations of American and Canadian journalism educators 1990-91 and was named Journalism Administrator of the Year by the Freedom Forum in 1994. He retired from the University of Florida in 1995. He has been listed in Who's Who in America since 1974.

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