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Last modified: 2024-01-27 by martin karner
Keywords: israel | etzel | irgun | irgun tsvai leumi | lekhi | lehi | lohame herut yisrael | stern |
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The Jewish underground organisation Irgun fought in the 1940's
against British domination in Palestine. The emblem shows the
contours of the British Mandate of
Palestine, claimed by the Irgun. This emblem had been placed
on a white cloth with two small blue stripes. (Source: Spiegel
32). [translated from German by Jarig Bakker]. Shows an Israeli national flag, fringed, with a map
including Israel and Jordan in the middle,
instead of the Magen David. On the map is a hand holding a rifle.
Jaume Oll?, 11 September 1999
Irgun Tsvai Leumi also spelled Irgun Zvai Leumi, which is
Hebrew for National Military Organization.
Insight taken from Wikipedia:
"Irgun, shorthand for Irgun Tsvai Leumi was a paramilitary
Zionist group that operated in the British Mandate of Palestine
from 1931 to 1948. In Israel, this group is consistently referred
to Etzel, a contraction of the Hebrew initials. It was classified
by British authorities as a "terrorist organization"
but many regarded it to be a "liberation movement".
Founding, development and key events: The group was an offshoot
of the Haganah in protest both against its policy of
restraint and socialist leanings. Based on the premises
formulated by Ze'ev Jabotinsky that "every Jew had the right
to enter Palestine; only active retaliation would deter the
Arabs; only Jewish armed force would ensure the Jewish
state," (Howard Sachar: A History of the State of Israel,
pps 265–266) the group made retaliation against Arab attacks a
central part of their initial efforts. The Jewish Agency
denounced the existence, strategy, and tactics of the group from
the very outset, leading to a full-fledged confrontation in 1948
that led to the dissolution of the group.
Irgun was founded in 1931 by Avraham Tehomi, following a largely
political and ideological split with the Haganah after
he had assumed leadership over the district of Jerusalem. Irgun
differentiated itself from the Haganah by disassociating from the
socialist ideology and the prevalent strategy of Havlagah,
or restraint. Throughout its history Irgun advocated a more
decisive use of force in the defense of Jews in Mandate Palestine
and in advancing the formation of a Jewish state.
While the strategy, tactics, and operational methods of the
organization changed through the years, its primary goals were
to: Provide a non-Socialist alternative to the leading Zionist
organizations; Eliminate or reduce the threat of Arab attacks on
Jewish targets by assured and harsh retaliation for such attacks;
Bring to an end the British mandatory rule, which they considered
in violation of international law
From its inception, the group went through several phases in its
short lifespan.
From 1931 to 1937 it was a small, renegade group that undertook
scattered attacks against Arab targets. This phase ended when the
group itself split, with some of its leaders, including the
original founder, Tehomi, returning to the Haganah; and
the group formally identifying itself as "Etzel"
(Irgun).
During the Great Uprising (1936–1939), in which about 400 Jews
were killed in Arab attacks, Irgun resumed its reprisal attacks
against Arabs. Following the killing of five Jews at Kibbutz
Qiryat Anavim on November 9, 1937, Irgun launched a series of
attacks which lasted until the beginning of World War II, in
which more than 250 Arab civilians were killed.
These attacks coincided roughly with Irgun's campaign of
facilitating immigration of European Jews who faced
discrimination, murder and pogroms in Europe. The first vessel
arrived on April 13, 1937, and the last on February 13, 1940. All
told, about 18,000 Jews escaped genocide in Europe in this way.
Upon the publication of the White Paper in May of 1939, Irgun
concentrated all its efforts against the British, whose
restrictions on Jewish settlements, they felt, were leading to
avoidable deaths by the hands of the Nazis.
From 1940 through 1943, Irgun declared a truce against the
British, and supported Allied efforts against Nazi forces and
Arab allies in the area by enlisting its members in British
forces and the Jewish Brigade. A small group group lead by
Avraham Stern, who insisted on continuing to fight the British,
broke off and formed and independent group (LEHI).
In 1941, the Irgun leader, David Raziel volunteered for a
dangerous mission in Iraq to assassinate Amin al-Husayni, but was
killed by a German bomber before the operation could be finished.
In February of 1944, under the new leadership of Menachem Begin,
Irgun resumed hostilities against the British authorities. The
purpose of these attacks was to bring public attention to the
cost and ineffectiveness of the British mandatory rule. It
included attacks on prominent symbols of the British
administration, including British military, police, and civil
headquarters at the King David Hotel and the British prison in
Acre. Although these attacks were largely successful, several
Irgun operatives were captured, convicted, and hanged. Refusing
to accept the jurisdiction of the British courts, those accused
refused to defend themselves. The Irgun leadership ultimately
responded to these executions by hanging two British sergeants,
which effectively brought the executions to an end.
Following the murder of Lord Moyne by Lehi, the Yishuv and Jewish
Agency initiated "The Hunting Season" on Irgun and the
Lehi group, facilitating the arrest of some 1000 members of those
organizations who were interned in British camps. The British
deported 251 of them to camps in Africa.
From about October of 1945 until July 1946 Irgun was in an
alliance with the Haganah and Lehi called the Jewish Resistance
Movement, organized to fight British restrictions on Jewish
immigration. This alliance ended when Irgun bombed British
military, police, and civil headquarters at the King David Hotel
as a retaliation for Operation Agatha.
From July 1946 until June 1948, Irgun fought as irregulars
against the British mandate and Arab forces, informally in
coordination with Haganah forces. Their participation in alleged
"war crimes" at Deir Yassin has been widely discussed
and documented. Their largest single operation was a successful
assault on Jaffa (an Arab enclave according to the UN partition
plan) starting on May 25. In 1948, the group was formally
dissolved and its members integrated into the newly formed
Israeli Defense Forces. This integration largely coincided with
the sinking of the Altalena, a ship with fighters Irgun had
recruited and arms Irgun had acquired for Israeli forces.
Legacy of Irgun: Leaders within the mainstream Jewish Agency,
Haganah, and Histadrut, as well as British authorities, routinely
condemned Irgun operations as "terrorist" and branded
it as an "illegal organization". In their defense,
former Irgun leaders assert that: The premises for their founding
and strategy were vindicated by subsequent events. Arab violence
against Jews in the mandate of Palestine could only be deterred
through retaliation; the British authorities only ended their
restrictions on Jewish immigration when pressured by force; and
unrestricted Jewish immigration was a matter of saving lives,
both during the Shoah and during post-World War II pogroms in
Poland and the Ukraine.
Operations that are usually characterized as
"terrorist" had another character. The King David Hotel
attack was considered a legitimate military target, being the
British military headquarters; the attack on Deir Yassin was part
of a campaign to control the road between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv;
the attack on the Acre prison was to release prisoners the
British intended to hang. At least one of the attacks plainly
made against civilians was unauthorized by the Irgun.
For further information see <www.etzel.org.il>.
E.R., 8 May 2005
Irgun (Organization) is the name given by the Mandate
authorities. Here it is always called ETZEL.
Basically it was the military wing of the Zionist Revisionist
Federation, whose youth movement was BETAR (see also Betar (Youth organization)).
After the independence, members of ETZEL led by Menahem Begin
founded a political party named "Herut" (Freedom) which
is the major ingredient of the today Likud
Party.
The "New Zionist Federation" (the official name of the
revisionist organization) never accepted the British decision to
change the San-Remo pact of 19 April 1920 (in which the UK was
given a mandate on "Eretz-Israel" of both side of the
Jordan River (as appear on the map on the emblem) in order to
establish there a "Jewish National Home") and to
separate "Trans-Jordan" from it.
Dov Gutterman, 8 May 2005
The historical movement Irgun Zvai Leumi a.k.a. ETZEL was a
Jewish paramilitary association since 1931 up to september 1948.
Irgun Zvai Leumi is National Military Organization in Hebrew. It
was a radical nationalist organization. Originally was a hardline
split of Haganah. From 1943 ETZEL was headed by Menachem Begin
(Prime Minister of Israel from 1977 to 1982)
The symbol of Irgun: The symbol of Irgun Zvai Leumi was a hand
gripping a rifle over the profile of a map including the land of
current Israel,Pallestine and Jordan. The Jordan river is also
marked in the map. Two Hebrrew characters at right side and two
other at left side (rak-kah) are also part of the
symbol.
The flag of Altalena: The flag of Altalena is the Irgun flag of
the vessel named Altalena that was bombed and burned in a
confrontation between the Jewish paramilitary organisation and
the recent Israeli Defence Forces in 1948. The complete event is
explained in at www.etzel.org.il.
It is a vertical flag. In the flag of Altalena the Irgun symbol
is placed inside of the six-pointed star (Magen David). This
historical flag is conserved in the Israel Army
Museum in Jaffa (Tel Aviv-Yafo).
The explanation printed in Hebrew and English over the protective
glass: "The flag of Altalena was saved at the last minute,
before the ship went up in flames, by Iphtah – the signal
operator. He risked his own life by returning to the ship and
rescuing the flag"
Another Irgun flag variant is the flag that was used in the
battle of Jaffa (1948) – It's a horizontal flag. The Irgun symbol
is replacing the Magen David. Two sentences in Hebrew have been
also incorporated.
Those are two different Irgun flags, but both looks like
home-made. It's difficult to say which one is the original and
which one is the variant.
Santiago Tazón, 7 September 2005
These are the Hebrew words Rak Kakh (Only thus). Not
to be confused with the later "Kach" movement which
took its name from this motto. The words usually go on either
side of the logo, not above it.
I wouldn't say "vertical" – after all, the Irgun symbols
are arranged horizontally. Most likely (from appearance) a
handmade Israeli flag with an off-center star, and the Irgun
symbols drawn on it. It's most likely hung that way so it can fit
in the case.
Nathan Lamm, 8 September 2005
The inscription on "Jaffa" flag: above – HaIrgun
HaTtzvai HaLeumi (The National Military Organization), below –
BeEretz Israel (In Israel-land)
The ETZEL didn't had an official flag so the flags were probably
initiated separately to "fill the gap". The Altalena
flag was probably arrived with it from France (it deaprted on
June 11, 1948) while the other one was was probably made in Tel
Aviv for the first "reveled" ceremony of the ETZEL held
in Ramat-Gan on 24 April 1948 in advance of the Jaffa campaign
that started the next morning.
Dov Gutterman, 8 September 2005
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Insight taken from Wikipedia:
"Lehi (Hebrew acronym for Lohamei Herut Yisrael,
"Fighters for the Freedom of Israel") was a radical
self-described terrorist group that had as its goal the eviction
of the British from Palestine to allow unrestricted immigration
of Jews and the formation of a Jewish state.
Foundations and founding: Avraham ("Yair") Stern was
originally an adherent of the Revisionist Zionist movement
founded by Ze'ev Jabotinsky and a member of Irgun, but separated
from these groups in 1940 to form his own group, which he called
Irgun Zvai Leumi BeYisrael (National Military Organization in
Israel).
Specifically, Stern believed that the Jewish population should
focus its efforts on fighting the British rather than supporting
them in World War II; and that terrorist methods were an
effective means to achieve those goals. He differentiated between
"enemies of the Jewish people" (e.g., the British) and
"Jew haters," (e.g., the Nazis), believing that the
former needed to be defeated, and the latter neutralized. To this
end, he initiated contact with Nazi authorities offering an
alliance with Germany in return for the establishment of a Jewish
state in Palestine.
Evolution of the organization: British authorities quickly
focused their efforts against Stern's group. In 1942, British
police shot Stern under disputed circumstances. Several of the
group members were arrested, and the group went into eclipse
until it was reformed as "Lehi" under a triumvirate of
Israel Eldad, Natan Yellin-Mor, and Yitzhak Shamir (later prime
minister of Israel). The new Lehi was guided by spiritual and
philosophical leaders Uri Zvi Greenberg and Israel Eldad, while
the old Lehi was primarily guided by the writings of Abba
Akhimier. The smallest by far of any of the Jewish armed groups
during the mandatory era, it never attracted more than a few
hundred followers,and was reviled by most of its contemporaries.
Although the name of the group only became "Lehi" about
1943 after Stern's death, this article follows the common
practice of calling it that throughout its history.
Lehi adopted a non-socialist platform of Anti-Imperialist
ideology. It viewed the continued British rule of Palestine as a
violation of the mandate's provision generally, and its
restrictions on Jewish immigration to be an intolerable breach of
international law. Unlike the Haganah and Irgun, which fought on
two fronts against British and Arabs, Lehi concentrated its
attacks exclusively on British targets.
Lehi also rejected the authority of the Jewish Agency and related
organizations, operating entirely on its own throughout nearly
all of its existence.
Lehi prisoners captured by the British generally refused to
present a defence when brought to trial in British courts. They
would only read out statements in which they declared that the
court, representing an occupying force, had no jurisdiction over
them and is illegal. For the same reason, Lehi prisoners refused
to plea for amnesty, even when it was clear that this would have
them spared from the death penalty. In one case two Lehi men
killed themselves in prison to deprive the British of the ability
to hang them.
Contact with Nazi authorities: In 1940 and 1941, Lehi proposed
intervening in the Second World War on the side of Nazi Germany
to attain their help in expelling Britain from Mandate Palestine
and to offer their assistance in "evacuating" the Jews
of Europe arguing that "common interests could exist between
the establishment of a new order in Europe in conformity with the
German concept, and the true national aspirations of the Jewish
people as they are embodied by the NMO (Lehi)." Late in
1940, Lehi representative Naftali Lubenchik was sent to Beirut
where he met the German official Werner Otto von Hentig and
delivered a letter from Lehi offering to "actively take part
in the war on Germany's side" in return for German support
for "the establishment of the historic Jewish state on a
national and totalitarian basis, bound by a treaty with the
German Reich". Von Hentig forwarded the letter to the German
embassy in Ankara, but there is no record of any official
response. Lehi tried to establish contact with the Germans again
in December 1941, also apparently without success.
Actions: Apart from the small number of high-profile operations,
Lehi mostly conducted small-scale operations such as
assassination of British soldiers and police officers and, on
occasion, Jewish "collaborators". Another operation
(1947) was to send bombs in the mail to many British politicians.
Other operations included sabotaging infrastructure targets:
bridges, railroads, and oil refineries. Lehi financed their
operations from private donations, extortion, and bank robbery.
November 6, 1944 – Lehi assassinates Lord Moyne, a British
government representative blamed for the White Paper immigration
policy, in Cairo. This act rocked the British government, and
outraged Winston Churchill the British Prime Minister. The two
assassins were captured, sentenced to death, and executed.
April 9, 1948 – Lehi and Irgun attack Deir Yassin
September 17, 1948, Lehi assassinated the UN Mediator, Count
Folke Bernadotte, who had been sent to broker a settlement in the
dispute. The assassination was directed by Yehoshua Zetler and
carried out by a four-man team led by Meshulam Markover. The
fatal shots were fired by Yehoshua Cohen. Lehi leaders Nathan
Yellin-Mor and Matitiahu Schmulevitz were arrested two months
after the murder. Most of the suspects involved were released
immediately and all of them were granted general amnesty on the
14th of February, 1949.
Dissolution and integration: The conflict between Lehi and
mainstream Jewish and subsequently Israeli organizations came to
an end when Lehi was formally dissolved and integrated into the
Israeli Defense Forces on May 31, 1948, its leaders getting
amnesty from prosecution or reprisals as part of the integration.
However, it maintained independent operations in Jerusalem until
it was forcefully broken up after the assassination of the
UN-envoy Count Folke Bernadotte. Members of the Lehi founded a
political party known as "Fighters," and Yellin-Mor was
elected to the first Knesset, but the party was short-lived.
In 1980 Israel instituted the Lehi ribbon, red, black, grey, pale
blue and white which is awarded to former members of the Lehi
underground who wished to carry it."
For further reading see www.lehi.org.il.
E.R., 8 May 2005
