The Schapera inquiry
Encyclopedia
The Shapira inquiry, November 1948, was an internal Israeli government inquiry following reports that the IDF
had harmed civilians during military operations in Galilee and the South.
in the Galilee
and Operation Yoav
in the South. On 29 October David Ben Gurion wrote in his diary that there were rumors of 70–80 people being "slaughtered" by the army. On 3 November Yigal Allon
ordered OC of the 8th Brigade, General Yitzhak Sadeh
to investigate reports that the 89th Battalion had killed "many tens" of prisoners at Al-Dawayima
.
On 7 November the Cabinet appointed a three-man committee of inquiry: Labour and Construction Minister Mordechai Bentov
(Mapam
), Justice Minister Felix Rosenblueth
(Progressive Party
), Immigration and Health Minister Hayim Moshe Shapira
(Hamizzrahi – National Religious Party
).
On 8 November Eliezer Pra'i, a newspaper editor, received a letter describing the same event which he passed onto Aharon Cohen
, a senior member of Mapam
, one of the junior partners in the Provisional Government
.
At a cabinet meeting on 14 November the committee, having encountered a lack of cooperation from the army, asked for more powers. This was rejected by the cabinet and Shapira resigned. Ben Gurion then proposed, under threat of his resignation, a one-man investigation. The cabinet voted that "the Prime Minister investigates the charges concerning the army's behavior towards Arabs in Galilee and the South." Ben Gurion appointed Attorney-General Ya'akov Shimshon Shapira
to head the investigation, staffed by three army officers.
Shapira's instructions were:
"You are requested herein ... to investigate if there were attacks by ... the army on Arab inhabitants in the Galilee and the South, not in conformity with the accepted rules of war ... What were the attacks ...? To what degree was th army command, low and high, responsible for these acts, and to what degree was the existing discipline in the army responsible for this and what should be done to rectify matters and to punish the guilty?"
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
had harmed civilians during military operations in Galilee and the South.
Background
In the Autumn of 1948 the Israeli army launched two major offensives, Operation HiramOperation Hiram
Operation Hiram was a military operation conducted by the Israel Defense Forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It was led by General Moshe Carmel, and aimed at capturing the upper Galilee region from the Arab Liberation Army forces led by Fawzi al-Qawuqji and a Syrian battalion...
in the 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...
and Operation Yoav
Operation Yoav
Operation Yoav was an Israeli military operation carried out from 15–22 October 1948 in the Negev Desert, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Its goal was to drive a wedge between the Egyptian forces along the coast and the Beersheba–Hebron–Jerusalem road and ultimately to conquer the whole Negev...
in the South. On 29 October David Ben Gurion wrote in his diary that there were rumors of 70–80 people being "slaughtered" by the army. On 3 November Yigal Allon
Yigal Allon
Yigal Allon was an Israeli politician, a commander of the Palmach, and a general in the IDF. He served as one of the leaders of Ahdut HaAvoda party and the Israeli Labor party, and acting Prime Minister of Israel, and was a member of the Knesset and government minister from the 10th through the...
ordered OC of the 8th Brigade, General Yitzhak Sadeh
Yitzhak Sadeh
Yitzhak Sadeh , was the commander of the Palmach, one of the founders of the Israel Defense Forces at the time of the establishment of the State of Israel and a cousin of British philosopher Isaiah Berlin.-Biography:...
to investigate reports that the 89th Battalion had killed "many tens" of prisoners at Al-Dawayima
Al-Dawayima massacre
On October 28, 1948, the Arab town al-Dawayima was conquered by the IDF's 89th Commando Battalion during the Operation Yoav. The Battalion, whose first commander was Moshe Dayan, was composed of former Irgun and Lehi forces...
.
On 7 November the Cabinet appointed a three-man committee of inquiry: Labour and Construction Minister Mordechai Bentov
Mordechai Bentov
Mordechai Bentov was an Israeli journalist and politician, and was one of the signatories of the Israeli declaration of independence.-Biography:...
(Mapam
Mapam
Mapam was a political party in Israel and is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Meretz party.-History:Mapam was formed by a January 1948 merger of the Hashomer Hatzair Workers Party and Ahdut HaAvoda Poale Zion Movement. The party was originally Marxist-Zionist in its outlook and represented...
), Justice Minister Felix Rosenblueth
Pinchas Rosen
Pinchas Rosen was an Israeli politician and statesman, and the country's first Minister of Justice, serving three times during 1948-51, 1952–56, and 1958-61. He was also leader of the Independent Liberals during the 1960s.-Biography:...
(Progressive Party
Progressive Party (Israel)
The Progressive Party was a political party in Israel.-History:The Progressive Party was a liberal party, most of whose founders came from the ranks of the New Aliyah Party and HaOved HaTzioni, which had been active prior to independence...
), Immigration and Health Minister Hayim Moshe Shapira
Haim-Moshe Shapira
Haim-Moshe Shapira was a key Israeli politician in the early days of the state's existence. A signatory of Israel's declaration of independence, he served continuously as a minister from the country's foundation in 1948 until his death in 1970 apart from a brief spell in the late...
(Hamizzrahi – National Religious Party
United Religious Front
The United Religious Front was a political alliance of the four major religious parties in Israel, as well as the Union of Religious Independents, formed to fight the 1949 elections.-History:...
).
On 8 November Eliezer Pra'i, a newspaper editor, received a letter describing the same event which he passed onto Aharon Cohen
Aharon Cohen
Aharon Cohen was a senior member of Mapam, a pro-USSR Israeli political party which existed during the first two decades of statehood.Born, 1910, in Britchany, Bessarabia in what was the Tsarist empire, now Romania. He came to Palestine in 1929 where he joined kibbutz Sha'ar Ha'amakin, near Haifa....
, a senior member of Mapam
Mapam
Mapam was a political party in Israel and is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Meretz party.-History:Mapam was formed by a January 1948 merger of the Hashomer Hatzair Workers Party and Ahdut HaAvoda Poale Zion Movement. The party was originally Marxist-Zionist in its outlook and represented...
, one of the junior partners in the Provisional Government
First government of Israel
The first government of Israel formed by David Ben-Gurion on 8 March 1949, a month and a half after the elections for the first Knesset. His Mapai party formed a coalition with the United Religious Front, the Progressive Party, the Sephardim and Oriental Communities and the Democratic List of...
.
At a cabinet meeting on 14 November the committee, having encountered a lack of cooperation from the army, asked for more powers. This was rejected by the cabinet and Shapira resigned. Ben Gurion then proposed, under threat of his resignation, a one-man investigation. The cabinet voted that "the Prime Minister investigates the charges concerning the army's behavior towards Arabs in Galilee and the South." Ben Gurion appointed Attorney-General Ya'akov Shimshon Shapira
Ya'akov Shimshon Shapira
-Biography:Shapira was born in Kirovograd in the Russian Empire in 1902. He studied in a Yeshiva and later studied medicine at the University of Kharkov. He was active in the Zionist socialist Movement and was incarcerated for his activism from 1923 to 1924...
to head the investigation, staffed by three army officers.
Shapira's instructions were:
"You are requested herein ... to investigate if there were attacks by ... the army on Arab inhabitants in the Galilee and the South, not in conformity with the accepted rules of war ... What were the attacks ...? To what degree was th army command, low and high, responsible for these acts, and to what degree was the existing discipline in the army responsible for this and what should be done to rectify matters and to punish the guilty?"