Moshe Kelman
Encyclopedia
Moshe Kelman was the operational commander of the Palmach
's Third Battalion in 1948.
On 15 February 1948 Kelman led a force of 60 men which attacked the remote village Sa'sa'
, in the Upper Galilee
. The operation coincided with a number of other attacks on Arab targets. Its intention was to demonstrate that no village was beyond the reach of the Haganah. Kelman had orders to "blow up twenty houses and kill the largest possible number of fighters." During the night-time attack ten houses where destroyed or damaged and "tens" of people killed. Kelman is quoted as saying 35 houses were demolished and 60 - 80 killed.
On 3 or 4 May 1948, during Operation Yiftach
, Kelman ordered the shooting of "70 or so" Arab prisoners in a gulley close to Safad. Afterwards a female member of the Palmach, Netiva Ben-Yehuda
, was ordered, with others, to the untie ropes from the dead when it was feared that the bodies might be discovered by members of the Red Cross who were visiting the area. Ilan Pappe
states that one of the reasons for this and "many other mass killings" was that the Haganah
did not have facilities for large numbers of prisoners.
On 12 July 1948, during Operation Danny
, Kelman was in command of the 3rd Battalion in Lydda. After an out-break of gun-fire his troops were ordered to shoot at "any clear target" and at anyone "seen on the streets". In two and a half hours "some 250" people were killed, "and many wounded."
Palmach
The Palmach was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
's Third Battalion in 1948.
On 15 February 1948 Kelman led a force of 60 men which attacked the remote village Sa'sa'
Sa'sa'
Sa'sa was a Palestinian village, located 12 kilometres northwest of Safed that was depopulated by Israeli forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war...
, in the Upper Galilee
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
. The operation coincided with a number of other attacks on Arab targets. Its intention was to demonstrate that no village was beyond the reach of the Haganah. Kelman had orders to "blow up twenty houses and kill the largest possible number of fighters." During the night-time attack ten houses where destroyed or damaged and "tens" of people killed. Kelman is quoted as saying 35 houses were demolished and 60 - 80 killed.
On 3 or 4 May 1948, during Operation Yiftach
Operation Yiftach
Operation Yiftach was an offensive of the Israeli Haganah between 28 April and 29 May 1948 aimed at capturing the eastern Galilee. The central objectives were the capture of Safed and the securing of the Lebanese and Syrian borders before the British Mandate ended on 14 May 1948...
, Kelman ordered the shooting of "70 or so" Arab prisoners in a gulley close to Safad. Afterwards a female member of the Palmach, Netiva Ben-Yehuda
Netiva Ben-Yehuda
Netiva Ben Yehuda was an Israeli author, editor and media personality. She was a commander in the pre-state Jewish underground, Palmach.-Biography:...
, was ordered, with others, to the untie ropes from the dead when it was feared that the bodies might be discovered by members of the Red Cross who were visiting the area. Ilan Pappe
Ilan Pappé
Ilan Pappé is a professor with the College of Social Sciences and International Studies at the University of Exeter in the UK, director of the university's European Centre for Palestine Studies, co-director of the Exeter Centre for Ethno-Political Studies, and political activist...
states that one of the reasons for this and "many other mass killings" was that the Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
did not have facilities for large numbers of prisoners.
On 12 July 1948, during Operation Danny
Operation Danny
Operation Danny was an Israeli military offensive launched at the end of the first truce of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The objectives were to capture territory east of Tel Aviv and then to push inland and relieve the Jewish population and forces in Jerusalem...
, Kelman was in command of the 3rd Battalion in Lydda. After an out-break of gun-fire his troops were ordered to shoot at "any clear target" and at anyone "seen on the streets". In two and a half hours "some 250" people were killed, "and many wounded."