1948 HAGANAH Israel INDEPENDENCE WAR Enamel PORCELAIN Metal STREET IDF SIGN

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1948 HAGANAH Israel INDEPENDENCE WAR Enamel PORCELAIN Metal STREET IDF SIGN:
$425.00

DESCRIPTION :Right after the newly born STATE of ISRAEL has gained its INDEPENDENCE in May 14th 1948 , The most popular STREET NAMES were those which were related to the freshINDEPENDENCE , The WAR of INDEPENDENCE , The PALMACH and its HEROS , The HAGANAH , The newly born IDF - ZAHAL , And the Israeli DEFENSE and WARRIORS. Up for sale is this original vintage PORCELAIN ( Enamel ) steel STREET SIGN which is an ULTRA RARE remnant of that important and glorious ERA . It is named after the \"HAGANA\" , The Jewish-Hebrew paramilitary organization in the time of the British Mandate in Eretz Israel - palestine , Which became the core of the Israel Defense Forces ( IDF ). The street sign is \"RECHOV HA\"HAGANAH\" \" (Written on SIGN also in Englishletters \" REHOV HA\'HAGANA\") .Indeed one of the the MOST IMPORTANT and DESIRABLE names for a main STREET. The SIGN is original vintage from that era , Late 1948 or early-mid 1949 up to the mid-late 1960\'s and those SIGNS which survived the weather damages , Were replaced by newer aluminum SIGNS. This SIGN was actualy hanged ontheHAGANA streetand only its positioning below a protective canopy has helped it to retain its EXCELLENT CONDITION. Heavy and quite thick metal . Strongly mounted top . Dark blue and White original porcelain. Mounted white letters : Hebrew and English . 10 original tiny screw holes for hanging . Dimensions around : 9\" x 19\"x 0.5\" . Very thick metal . Mounted top. Enamel-porcelain coated. Very good condition . The Metal is firm , No dents . The porcelain is smooth , Vivid colored ,Glossy and firm. No scratches , Dents or rust. ( Pls look at scan for accurate AS IS images ) . Will be sent in a special protective rigid sealed package.AUTHENTICITY : ThisSTREET SIGNis guaranteed ORIGINAL from Late 1948 or early-mid 1949 up to the mid-late 1960\'s , NOT arecently made imitation, Itholds alife long GUARANTEE for its AUTHENTICITY and ORIGINALITY.PAYMENTS : Payment method accepted : Paypal.

SHIPPING : Shipp worldwide via registeredairmail is$19 .SIGN will be sent in a special protective rigid sealed package. Handling within 3-5 days after payment. Estimated duration 10 days.

Haganah(Hebrew:הַהֲגָנָה‎, lit.The Defence) was aJewishparamilitaryorganization in theBritish Mandate of Palestine(1921–48), which became the core of theIsrael Defense Forces(IDF).Contents[hide]1 History1.1 Overview1.2 1920 and 1921 Arab riots1.3 1931 Irgun split1.4 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine1.5 1939 White Paper1.6 World War II participation1.7 1944 Lord Moyne assassination and the Season1.8 Post World War II1.9 Reorganisation1.10 War of Independence1.11 Pal-Heib Unit2 See also3 Notes4 References5 Further reading6 External linksHistoryOverviewThe evolution of Jewish defense organisations in Palestine and later Israel went from small self-defense groups active during Ottoman rule, to ever larger and more sophisticated ones during the British Mandate, leading through the Haganah to the national army of Israel, the IDF. The evolution went step by step fromBar-Giora, toHashomer, to Haganah, to IDF.The Jewish paramilitary organisations in theNew Yishuv(the Zionist enterprise in Palestine) started with theSecond Aliyah(1904 to 1914).[2]The first such organization was Bar-Giora, founded in September 1907. It consisted of a small group of Jewish immigrants who guarded settlements for an annual fee. At no time did Bar-Giora have more than 100 members.[citation needed]It was converted to Hashomer (Hebrew:השומר‎‎; \"The Watchman\") in April 1909, which operated until theBritish Mandate of Palestinecame into being in 1920. Hashomer was an elitist organization with narrow scope, and was mainly created to protect against criminal gangs seeking to steal property. DuringWorld War I, the forerunners of the Haganah/IDF were theZion Mule Corpsand theJewish Legion, both of which were part of the British Army. After theArab riotsagainst Jews in April 1920, the Yishuv\'s leadership saw the need to create a nationwide underground defense organization, and the Haganah was founded in June of the same year. The Haganah became a full-scale defense force after the1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestinewith an organized structure, consisting of three main units—theField Corps,Guard Corps, and thePalmachstrike force. During World War II the successor to the Jewish Legion of World War I was theJewish Brigade, which was joined by many Haganah fighters. During the 1947-48 civil war between the Arab and Jewish communities in what was still Mandatory Palestine, a reorganised Haganah managed to defend or wrestle most of the territory it was ordered to hold or capture. At the beginning of the ensuing 1948-49 full-scale conventional war against regular Arab armies, the Haganah was reorganised to become the core of the new Israel Defense Forces.1920 and 1921 Arab riotsAfter the 1920Arab riotsand 1921Jaffa riots, the Jewish leadership in Palestine believed that the British, to whom theLeague of Nationshad given a mandate over Palestine in 1920, had no desire to confront local Arab gangs that frequently attacked Palestinian Jews.[3][4]Believing that they could not rely on the British administration for protection from these gangs, the Jewish leadership created the Haganah to protect Jewish farms andkibbutzim. In addition to guarding Jewish communities, the role of the Haganah was to warn the residents of and repel attacks by Palestinian Arabs. In the period between 1920–1929, the Haganah lacked a strong central authority or coordination. Haganah \"units\" were very localized and poorly armed: they consisted mainly of Jewish farmers who took turns guarding their farms or their kibbutzim.Following the1929 Palestine riots, the Haganah\'s role changed dramatically. It became a much larger organization encompassing nearly all the youth and adults in the Jewish settlements, as well as thousands of members from the cities. It also acquired foreign arms and began to develop workshops to createhand grenadesand simple military equipment, transforming from an untrained militia to a capable underground army.1931 Irgun splitMany Haganah fighters objected to the official policy ofhavlagah(restraint) that Jewish political leaders (who had become increasingly controlling of the Haganah) had imposed on the militia. Fighters had been instructed to only defend communities and not initiate counterattacks against Arab gangs or their communities. This policy appeareddefeatistto many who believed that the best defense is a good offense. In 1931, the more militant elements of the Haganah splintered off and formed theIrgun Tsva\'i-Leumi(National Military Organization), better known as \"Irgun\" (or by its Hebrew acronym, pronounced \"Etzel\").1936–1939 Arab revolt in PalestineHaganah fighters guardingMigdal Tzedek, 1936During the1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, the Haganah worked to protect British interests and to quell Arab rebellion using theFOSH, and thenHishunits. At that time, the Haganah fielded 10,000 mobilized men along with 40,000 reservists. Although the British administration did not officially recognize the Haganah, the British security forces cooperated with it by forming theJewish Settlement Police,Jewish Supernumerary PoliceandSpecial Night Squads, which were trained and led by ColonelOrde Wingate. The battle experience gained during the training was useful in the1948 Arab–Israeli War.1939 White PaperBy 1939, the British had issued theWhite Paper, which severely restricted Jewish immigration to Palestine, deeply angering the Zionist leadership.David Ben-Gurion, then chairman of theJewish Agency, set the policy for the Zionist relationship with the British:We shall fight the war against Hitler as if there were no White Paper, and we shall fight the White Paper as if there were no war.In reaction to the White Paper, the Haganah built up thePalmachas the Haganah\'s elite strike force and organized illegal Jewish immigration to Palestine. Approximately 100,000 Jews were brought to Palestine in over one hundred ships during the final decade of what became known asAliyah Bet. The Haganah also organized demonstrations against British immigration quotas.World War II participationIn 1940 a Haganah bomb sunk theSSPatria, killing 267 peopleIn 1940 the Haganah sabotaged thePatria, an ocean liner being used by the British to deport 1,800 Jews to Mauritius, with a bomb intended to cripple the ship. However the ship sank, killing 260.In the first years ofWorld War II, the British authorities asked Haganah for cooperation again, due to the fear of anAxisbreakthrough in North Africa.[citation needed]AfterRommelwas defeated atEl Alameinin 1942, the British stepped back from their all-out support for Haganah.[citation needed]In 1943, after a long series of requests and negotiations, the British Army announced the creation of theJewish Brigade Group. While Palestinian Jews had been permitted to enlist in the British army since 1940, this was the first time an exclusively Jewish military unit served in the war under a Jewish Flag. The Jewish Brigade Group consisted of 5,000 soldiers and was initially deployed with the 8th Army in North Africa and later inItalyin September 1944. The brigade was disbanded in 1946.[citation needed]All in all, some 30,000 Palestinian Jews served in the British army during the war.[5]On May 14, 1941, the Haganah created thePalmach(an acronym forPlugot Mahatz—strike companies), an elite commando section, in preparation against the possibility of a British withdrawal andAxisinvasion of Palestine. Its members, young men and women, received specialist training in guerilla tactics and sabotage.[6]During 1942 the British gave assistance in the training of Palmach volunteers but in early 1943 they withdrew their support and attempted to disarm them.[7]The Palmach, then numbering over 1,000, continued as an underground organisation with its members working half of each month askibbutzvolunteers, the rest of the month spent training.[8]It was never large—by 1947 it amounted to merely five battalions (about 2,000 men)—but its members had not only received physical and military training, but also acquired leadership skills that would subsequently enable them to take up command positions in Israel\'s army.1944 Lord Moyne assassination and the SeasonIn 1944, after the assassination ofLord Moyne(the British Minister of State for the Middle East), by members of theLehi, the Haganah worked with the British to kidnap, interrogate, and in some cases, deport Irgun members. This action, which lasted from November 1944 to February 1945, was called theSaison, or the Hunting Season, and was directed against the Irgun and not the Lehi.[citation needed]FutureJerusalemmayorTeddy Kollekwas later revealed to be aJewish Agencyliaison officer working with the British authorities who had passed on information that led to the arrest of many Irgun activists.[9]Many Jewish youth, who had joined the Haganah in order to defend the Jewish people, were greatly demoralized by operations against their own people.[10]The Irgun, paralyzed by the Saison, were ordered by their commander,Menachem Begin, not to retaliate in an effort to avoid a full blown civil war. Although many Irgunists objected to these orders, they obeyed Begin and refrained from fighting back. The Saison eventually ended due to perceived British betrayal of the Yishuv becoming more obvious to the public and increased opposition from Haganah members.[10]Post World War IIHaganah members in training (1947)Haganah ShipJewish StateatHaifa Port(1947)Haganah troops on paradeThe Saison officially ended when the Haganah, Irgun and the Lehi formed theJewish Resistance Movement, in 1945. Within this new framework, the three groups agreed to operate under a joint command. They had different functions, which served to drive the British out of Palestine and create aJewish state.The Haganah was less active in theJewish Rebellionthan the other two groups, but the Palmach did carry out anti-British operations, including a raid on theAtlit detainee campthat released 208 illegal immigrants, theNight of the Trains, theNight of the Bridges, and attacks onPalestine Policebases.[11]The Haganah withdrew on 1 July 1946, but \"remained permanently unco-operative\" with the British authorities.[12]It continued to organize illegal Jewish immigration as part of theAliyah Betprogram, in which ships carrying illegal immigrants attempted to breach the British blockade of Palestine and land illegal immigrants on the shore (most were intercepted by theRoyal Navy), and the Palmach performed operations against the British to support the illegal immigration program. The Palmach repeatedly bombed British radar stations being used to track illegal immigrant ships, and sabotaged British ships being used to deport illegal immigrants, as well as two British landing and patrol craft.[13]The Palmach performed a single assassination operation in which a British official who had been judged to be excessively cruel to Jewish prisoners was shot dead.[14]The Haganah also organized theBirya affair. Following the expulsion of the residents of the Jewish settlement of Birya for illegal weapons possession, thousands of Jewish youth organized by the Haganah marched to the site and rebuilt the settlement. They were expelled by British shortly afterward while showingpassive resistance, but after they returned a third time, the British backed off and allowed them to remain.[15]In addition to its operations, the Haganah continued to secretly prepare for a war with the Arabs once the British left by building up its arms and munitions stocks. It maintained a secret arms industry, with the most significant facility being an underground bullet factory underneath Ayalon, a kibbutz that had been established specifically to cover it up.[16]British estimates of the Haganah\'s strength at this time were apaper strength of 75,000 men and womenwith an effective strength of 30,000.[17]After the British army, the Haganah was considered the most powerful military force in the Middle East.[18]In July 1947, eager to maintain order with the visit ofUNSCOPto Palestine and under heavy pressure from the British authorities to resume collaboration, the Jewish Agency reluctantly came into brief conflict with the Irgun and Lehi, and ordered the Haganah to put a stop to the operations of the other two groups for the time being. As Palmach members refused to participate, a unit of about 200 men from regular Haganah units was mobilized, and foiled several operations against the British, including a potentially devastating attack on the British military headquarters at Citrus House in Tel Aviv, in which a Haganah member was killed by an Irgun bomb. The Haganah also joined the search for two British sergeants abducted by the Irgun as hostages against the death sentences of three Irgun members in what became known as theSergeants\' affair. The Jewish Agency leadership feared the damage this act would do to the Jewish cause, and also believed that holding the hostages would only jeopardize the fates of the three condemned Irgun members. The attempts to free the sergeants failed, and following the executions of the three Irgun members, the two sergeants were killed and hanged in a eucalyptus grove. However, the campaign soon disintegrated into a series of retaliatory abductions and beatings of each other\'s members by the Haganah and Irgun, and eventually petered out. The campaign was dubbed the \"Little Season\" by the Irgun.[10][19]ReorganisationTheatre of Operation of each Haganah brigade.After \'having gotten the Jews of Palestine and of elsewhere to do everything that they could, personally and financially, to helpYishuv,\' Ben-Gurion\'s second greatest achievement was his having successfully transformed Haganah from being a clandestine paramilitary organization into a true army.[20]Ben-Gurion appointedIsrael Galilito the position of head of the High Command counsel of Haganah and divided Haganah into 6infantrybrigades, numbered 1 to 6, allotting a precise theatre of operation to each one. Yaakov Dori was named Chief of Staff, but it was Yigael Yadin who assumed the responsibility on the ground as chief of Operations. Palmach, commanded byYigal Allon, was divided into 3 elite brigades, numbered 10–12, and constituted the mobile force of Haganah.[21]Ben-Gurion\'s attempts to retain personal control over the newly formedIDFlead later in July toThe Generals\' Revolt.On 19 November 1947, obligatoryconscriptionwas instituted for all men and women aged between 17 and 25. By end of March 21,000 people had been conscripted.[22][23]On 30 March the call-up was extended to men and single women aged between 26 and 35. Five days later a General Mobilization order was issued for all men under 40.[24]\"From November 1947, the Haganah, (...) began to change from a territorial militia into a regular army. (...) Few of the units had been well trained by December. (...) By March–April, it fielded still under-equipped battalion and brigades. By April–May, the Haganah was conducting brigade size offensive.[25]The brigades of the Haganah which merged into the IDF once this was created on 26 May 1948:The northernLevanoni Brigade, located in the Galilee, was split on February 22, 1948 into the 1st and 2nd Brigades.The 1st orGolani Brigade- was deployed in the Lower GalileeThe 2nd orCarmeli Brigade- was deployed in the north and took its name after its commander,Moshe CarmelThe 3rd orAlexandroni Brigade- formed on December 1, 1947 and dismantled in the summer of 1949The 4th orKiryati Brigade- formed in 1948 in the Tel Aviv areaThe 5th orGivati Brigade- formed in December 1947. During civil war the Givati Brigade was deployed in the central region, and during the conventional war in the south as the 5th BrigadeThe 6th orEtzioni or Jerusalem Brigade- headquartered inNetanya, it covered the area fromTel AvivtoZichron Ya\'akov[26][27]The Haganah mobilized Jewish youth for military trainingTo the initial six brigades, three were added later during the war:The7th Brigade, in Hebrew \"Hativat Sheva\" - formed in 1948, manned mainly withHolocaustsurvivors and including a number ofMachaltroops. Almost annihilated at Latrun, then re-formed in the north. It had tanks and mounted infantry.The8th Brigade- founded on May 24, 1948 and subordinated toYitzhak Sadehas the IDF\'s first armoured brigade, headquartered near Jerusalem.The 9th orOded Brigade- headquartered in Jerusalem.The Palmach brigades which merged into the IDF:The 10th orHarel Brigade- established on 16 April 1948The 11th orYiftach BrigadeThe 12th orNegev Brigade- established in March 1948War of IndependenceMain article:1948 Palestine WarHaganah fighters in 1947Haganah female officer in 1948After the British announced they would withdraw from Palestine, and the United Nations approved the partition of Palestine, the1947-48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestinebroke out. The Haganah played the leading role in the Yishuv\'s war with the Palestinian Arabs. Initially, it concentrated on defending Jewish areas from Arab raids, but after the danger of British intervention subsided as the British withdrew, the Haganah went on the offensive and seized more territory. Following theIsraeli Declaration of Independenceand the start of the1948 Arab–Israeli Waron May 15, 1948, the Haganah, now the army of the new state, engaged the invading armies of the surrounding Arab states.[10]On May 28, 1948, less than two weeks after the creation of the state of Israel on May 15, the provisional government created theIsrael Defense Forces, merging the Haganah, Irgun, and Lehi, although the other two groups continued to operate independently inJerusalemand abroad for some time after.[10]The re-organisation led to several conflicts between Ben-Gurion and the Haganah leadership, including what was known asThe Generals\' Revoltand the dismantling of the Palmach.Famous members of the Haganah includedYitzhak Rabin,Ariel Sharon,Rehavam Ze\'evi,Dov Hoz,Moshe Dayan,Yigal Allonand Dr.Ruth Westheimer.TheMuseum of Underground PrisonersinJerusalemcommemorates the activity of the underground groups in the pre-state period, recreating the everyday life of those imprisoned there.Pal-Heib UnitSomeBedouinshad longstanding ties with nearbyJewishcommunities. They helped defend these communities in the1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. During the1948 Arab–Israeli War, some Bedouins ofTubaformed an alliance with the Haganah defending Jewish communities in theUpper GalileeagainstSyria. Some were part of a Pal-Heib unit of the Haganah. Sheik Hussein Mohammed Ali Abu Yussef of Tuba was quoted in 1948 as saying, \"Is it not written in theKoranthat the ties of neighbors are as dear as those of relations? Our friendship with the Jews goes back many years. We felt we could trust them and they learned from us too\".[28] The underground military organization of the yishuv in Eretz Yisrael from 1920 to 1948. The Arab riots in 1920 and 1921 (q.v., see also Tel Hai) strengthened the view that it was impossible to depend upon the British authorities and that the yishuv needed to create an independent defense force completely free of foreign authority. In June 1920, the Haganah was founded.During the first nine years of its existence, the Haganah was a loose organization of local defense groups in the large towns and in several of the settlements. TheArab riots in 1929(q.v.) brought about a complete change in the Haganah\'s status.It became a large organization encompassing nearly all the youth and adults in the settlements, as well as several thousand members from each of the cities.It initiated a comprehensive training program for its members, ran officers\' training courses;Established central arms depots into which a continuous stream of light arms flowed from Europe.Simultaneously, the basis was laid for the underground production of arms.During1936-1939, the years of the Arab Revolt, were the years in which the Haganah matured and developed from a militia into a military body. Although the British administration did not officially recognize the organization, the British Security Forces cooperated with it by establishing civilian militia (see Jewish Settlement Police—J.S.P., and also, Jewish Auxiliary Police—ghafirs). In the summer of 1938 Sepcial Night Squads—S.N.S. were extablished, under the command of CaptainOrde Wingate(see also Plugot Sadeh,Yitzhak Sadeh).During the years of the riots, the Haganah protected the establishment of over 50 new settlements in new area of the country (see Homa Umigdal—Stockade and Watchtower Settlements). As a result of the British governmentAnti-Zionistpolicy, expressed in the White Paper of 1939, the Haganah supported illegal immigration and organized demonstrations against the BritishAnti-Zionistpolicy.With the outbreak of World War II, the Haganah was faced with new problems. It headed a movement of volunteers, from which Jewish units were formed for service in the British army (seeJewish Brigade Group). It also cooperated with British intelligence units and sent its personnel out on various commando missions in the Middle East. Another example of this cooperation was the dropping of 32 Jewish parachutists in 1943-44 behind enemy lines in the Balkans, Hungary and Slovakia. Europe (see alsoHannah Szenesh,Enzo Sereni,Havivah Reik).At the same time, the Haganah further strengthened its independent basis during the war. A systematic program of training was instituted for the youth of the country. In 1941, the Haganah\'s first mobilized regiment, the Palmach came into being. At the end of the war, when it became clear that the British government had no intention of altering itsAnti-Zionistpolicy, the Haganah began an open, organized struggle against British Mandatory rule in the framework of a unified Jewish Resistance Movement, consisting of Haganah,Irgun Zevai Le\'umi - Etzel, andLohamei Herut Yisrael—Lehi.Haganah branches were established at Jewish D.P. [displaced person] camps in Europe and Haganah members accompanied the “illegal” immigrant boats. In the spring of 1947,David Ben-Guriontook it upon himself to direct the general policy of the Haganah, especially in preparation for impending Arab attack. On May 26 1948, the Provisional Government of Israel decided to transform the Haganah into the regular army of the State, to be called “Zeva Haganah Le-Yisrael”—The Israel Defense Forces. BackgroundAlthough an unofficial underground movement, the Hagana (\"defense\" in Hebrew) was the primary quasi-military body of the Jewish community in Palestine and the Zionist Movement during the time of the British mandate, prior to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. From that time, the Hagana became the army of the state of Israel – ‘Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) (in Hebrew, Tzva Hagana Le-Yisrael – Zahal).The Hagana was established in 1920 and operated during the next decade under the auspices of the Workers Union (\"Histadrut”, in Hebrew). Following a period of Arab rioting, in August 1929, the Hagana became the \"official\", though secret, military wing of the Zionist Jewish Agency and the National Jewish Committee (Vaad Leumi) of Palestine. The Hagana General Command comprised six public representatives from the left and center-right Jewish parties. The main assignment of Hagana was to provide security to Jewish life and property against Arab violence, which had caused the deaths of more than 700 Jews between 1920 and 1939.Growing from a modest beginning of a few thousand, the Hagana soon became a large, well-organized quasi-military body of tens of thousand men and women. The British Government regarded the Hagana as an illegal underground organization, but for the Jewish population, it constituted a vital source of defense and security. Under the elected national institutions, it soon became the armed forces of the State in the making.The Best Defense is OffenseUp until1939,the Hagana focused on static protection of settlements, towns and other communities in pre-State Israel(called “Palestine”),based on the principle of defensive operations, building up and training military forces, as well as striving to acquire arms from every possible source, including clandestine manufacturing of weapons. After the bloody Arab uprising of1936to1939,the Hagana changed its strategy from defending from \"within the fences\" to offensive operations outside the domain of Jewish settlements and developed a mobile warfare doctrine.During that period, the first offensive units were established: first the mobile unit (Nodedet), then the field companies (Fosh) , and the famous \"Special Night Squads” (SNS) under the command of a pro-Zionist Scottish Officer, Orde Charles Wingate. Those offensive operations, carried out day and night, had a tremendous effect in reducing the attacks of the Arab bands and helped the British Mandatory Government to suppress the uprising.In the spring of 1939, a severe crisis developed after the British Government had changed the policy it had pursued since the Balfour Declaration (1917), issuing what was termed a \"White Paper”, recommending a series of pro-Arab steps and legislation, such as curtailing Jewish immigration and placing restrictions on purchase of land and on the establishment of new settlements by Jews. The Hagana was in the process of planning an armed confrontation against the British authorities, but withheld this program with the outbreak of World War II in the fall of 1939.During the war, the Hagana assisted the British in many ways, including Intelligence, and sent parachutists into German-occupied countries in Europe. About 30,000 Palestinian Jews (men and women), most of them members of the Hagana, joined the British Armed Forces in the war against Nazi Germany. In fact, the entire Jewish population, less than half a million, was mobilized to participate in the war effort.Development of Military Forces and CapabilitiesAs of 1939, the Hagana was re-organized and General Headquarters were formed led by the Chief of the General Staff (to be continued when the Hagana became Israel\'s Defense Forces in 1948).Besides helping the British in the war against Nazi Germany, the Hagana strengthened and improved its military capability. Thousands of youngsters aged 18-25 were organized and trained within the framework of “Field-Corps” (Chish) and \"Home-guards\" (Chim) to protect cities, towns and settlements. \"Youth Battalions\" (Gadna) were formed in which teenagers, both boys and girls, acquired pre-military training enabling them to join the ranks of the Hagana. Services such as intelligence, a signals corps, medical corps, and small air and maritime units were founded. Clandestine factories started to manufacture small arms, mortars and ammunition. Thousands, sent by the Hagana, served in the British Police units, mainly as the Jewish Settlements Police.The highlight was the establishment of the \"Palmach\" (Hebrew abbreviation of striking force) – the only fully mobilized force – created in 1941. The Palmach grew within four years from six companies to four battalions, soon to be organized as a brigade, directly under the command of the Hagana General Staff.The Palmach units, consisting of young men and women, were stationed inkibbutzim, where they underwent advanced military training but also worked in order to support themselves, while also scouting the country and getting to know every corner of it. Following the end of World War II, the Palmach led the struggle against the hostile British forces until they evacuated the country at the end of the British mandate inPalestinein May 1948.Throughout the War of Independence, especially in its initial stages, the Palmach constitutedthemajor fighting force against Arab assaults and invasions.The need to operate secretly, with only the most meager means and inadequate arms and other facilities, promoted a unique type of strategic military thinking, guerilla tactics and battlefield ethics that involved pioneering spirit, leadership in battle, high motivation, originality in planning, taking initiative and resourcefulness. The Hagana was based not merely on a hierarchy of ranks but on mutual understanding, equality of rights and duties, friendship, devotion to the cause and to each other. The notion was that when necessary, every soldier is capable to function as a commander (a Palmach slogan “every squad leader – a general”).As noted earlier, in 1939, the Hagana was re-structured, setting up a professional General Staff, headed by the Chief of Staff. This concept was later installed in the IDF, and remains until today.Jewish Illegal Immigration and New SettlementsIn addition to building up a military force and preparing the Jewish population for the future challenges, the Hagana took on two other important tasks at the very core of the Zionist mission -- to maintain the continued immigration (Aliya)of Jews into Palestine by any means and to assure the secured establishment of new Jewish settlements.Thus, from 1936 to the end of the British mandate in 1948, the Hagana initiated and participated in setting up about 140 new settlements, some of which were known as \"tower and stockade\". Eleven of these were put up in the Negev in the course of a single night in October of 1946. It may well be said that these settlements actually determined the borders of the new State in the making.Once the British adopted a policy of restricting Jewish immigration into Palestine (following the publication of the “White Paper”, and even before), the Jewish national institutions found ways and means to clandestinely bring in Jews under cover, by land and sea. This so-called “illegal immigration” (Ha’apala) began even before World War II, but it was in the forties that the Hagana took upon itself the responsibility of bringing in tens of thousands Jewish immigrants who had survived the Holocaust. During this same period, Jews from North Africa and Middle Eastern countries also reached a safe harbor inPalestine. Over 120,000 Jews were brought in by more than 100ships – acquired, equipped, navigated and commanded by a handful of Palmach youngsters.Fighting the British MandateIn the early 1930s, a few hundred members left the Hagana and formed a right-wing military body, called \"Irgun B\". In 1937 most of them re-joined the ranks of the Hagana, while the rest formed the “Etzel” (Irgun Zevai Leumi), which in turn split into “Lehi” (Lohamei Herut Israel), both small right-wing nationalist groups with an extremist ideology with regard to the struggle against the Arabs and the British.Neither of these two groups accepted the authority of the national Jewish Authorities.Towards the end of the war and after, the Hagana intensified its struggle – by political and even violent acts against British rule, along with more illegal immigration and further unauthorized settlements, in response to Britain’s opposition to the creation of an independent Jewish state (Ben-Gurion: “We will fight the Germans as if there is no White Paper, and the British as if there is no war with the Germany”).For a period of some nine months, the \"Hagana,\" \"Etzel\", and \"Lehi\" acted in concert (the \"Hebrew Resistance Movement\"), though independently, against the British,led by the Hagana. The three organizations informed each other before carrying out their operations.During this time, the Hagana performed many courageous acts, including raids on British police stations and destruction of British Radar installations.In the course of one night, they blew up 12 bridgesdisconnecting Palestine from the neighboring Arab countries,freed hundreds of immigrants captured by the British and held as prisoners in the Atlit camp,and causedserious damage to the mandatory railway lines and more. In all these operations, the Hagana took care as far as possible to avoid causing civilian casualties. Thecooperationamong the Jewish military resistance groups came to an end in July 1946 when, without authorization of the national Jewish authorities, the Etzel blew up theKingDavidHotelinJerusalem– killing many civilians, Jews, Arabs, and Englishmen.The operations against the British continued. The Hagana focused mainly on accelerating illegal immigration, attacking British ships and radar installations used to stop immigrants from entering the country; and setting up new settlements in border areas. In addition, major effort was devoted to building a strong military force, based on the Palmach and Chish, in order to prepare for what was considered an imminent war against the Arabs over control of Palestine. More undercover arms factories were constructed, weapons were acquired abroad, and young Holocaust survivors were trained in Europe and at the detention camps in Cyprus.The Hagana in the War ofIndependenceFrom the summer of 1947, the \"Hagana\" intensified preparations for a large-scale war against the local Arab militias and the armies of the Arab states. By the timeit had become clear that the British were about to leave Palestine and that a war would soon break out,David Ben Gurion assumedresponsibility for matters of defense.The Hagana was then organized to include the Palmach brigade, five infantry brigades, and other military services. Veterans of the British Army were also integrated into this general force, contributing their fighting skill and experience.War broke out in December 1947, immediately after the U.N. resolution about the partition of Palestine and the establishment of a Jewish state. The Hagana became the fighting force that defended the Jewish population in Palestine until the declaration of the State of Israel in May 1948, and continued as such until becoming the Israel Defense Force. During the first six months of heavy fighting, the Hagana managed to mobilize, equip, train, and activate a military power of about 50,000 men and women, functioning in 12 brigades, a nuclei of air and navel forces, alongside other units and services that exist in modern armies. During this period the Hagana forces broke the backbone of the Arab offensive and conquered strategic territories to resist the invasion of the armies of five Arab states. Up to May 1948, the Hagana forces finally succeeded in repelling most of the invading armies; and on June 1st, the Hagana became the Israel Defense Forces. The last Hagana Chief of Staff, General Yaakov Dori, took over as the first Chief of Staff of the IDF. The Hagana brigades became IDF brigades and its air and navel services became the Israeli Air Force and Navy, with all the other units and services being similarly transformed.David Ben-Gurion, the first Prime Minister of the State of Israel, described the importance of the Hagana in a famous speech on the day when the IDF was sworn in: \"Without the experience, the planning, the operational abilities, the commanding officers, the loyalty and the courage of the Hagana, the Jewish community could not have withstood the terrible bloody battles, and we never would have seen the rise of the State of Israel. In the history of the Jewish people the chapter of the Hagana will shine in glory and grandeur forever”.