In the Footsteps of the War of Independence in 1948
Where: Southern, central and northern main fronts.
Duration: 1 days
What to bring: hat, high-topped shoes, water. Bible
Language: The tour is originally in English.
The Jews in the Land of Israel entered the War of Independence with a military and political disadvantage. The UN resolution in November 1947 left them with little area, the amount of weapons and ammunition was minimal, and the fighting force was inexperienced. But the Jews' best weapon was their high motivation, perhaps because they had no alternative. They had the sea at their backs. Their choice was to fight or be destroyed.
They stood facing the Arab countries: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and the Arabs in Israel. The majority of the Arab force was a regular and trained army, armed with modern weapons, with British orientation, and with almost unlimited logistical support.
Between November 1947 and April 1948 the primary struggle was over the roads and within the mixed cities, Arab attacks were carried out by local forces of Palestinian Arabs with assistance from outside, the Jewish community was on the defensive. In April 1948, the Jews decided to change strategy and move from defense to offense, among other reasons in order to create a secure stretch of land between the Jewish settlements.
David Ben-Gurion declared independence of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948, and immediately after that night, the armies of the Arab countries began to invade the State. The war ended only in April 1949 with the conquest of the city of Eilat, and the victory of the Jews. It was a bitter victory, with some 6,000 Jewish casualties, about 1% of the Jewish population in Palestine.
Activities
We will review 3 main fronts:
On the southern front to understand the war against the Egyptian invaders
On the central front to understand the war on Jerusalem and Gush Etzion against the Jordanian Legion
On the northern front in the region south of the Sea of Galilee against the Syrians
During the tour we will talk about the period that preceded the War of Independence, the type of preparedness and preparation, the establishment of economic and social institutions, the infrastructure for the establishment of the IDF, the Palmach, the underground movements, military forces of the Jews against the military forces of the Arabs, procurement, negotiations, and the conquest of Eilat.