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From: hfavr@mtuxo.UUCP (a.reed)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Haganah and terrorists
Message-ID: <1393@mtuxo.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 11-Mar-86 22:23:10 EST
Article-I.D.: mtuxo.1393
Posted: Tue Mar 11 22:23:10 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 15-Mar-86 06:17:30 EST
References: <96@ubc-vision.UUCP> <1389@mtuxo.UUCP> <96@cad.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Information Systems Labs, Holmdel NJ
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> > Farzin Mokhtarian:
> In article <1389@mtuxo.UUCP>, hfavr@mtuxo.UUCP (a.reed) writes:
> > Farzin Mokhtarian:
> > > (The) Haganah .... participated in the massacre at Deir Yassin of 254
> > > women, children and old men.
> > 
> > The massacre at Dir Yassin was carried out by the Irgun and Stern
> > forces in an attempt to outflank the Haganah, which considered Dir
> > Yassin a friendly village (check any military history of the Israeli War
> > of Independence). Jewish political leaders associated with the Haganah
> > uniformly condemned the Irgun-Stern murderers. The Haganah high command
> > issued an order for the arrest of the killers, but this order wasn't
> > 
> > 				Adam Reed (ihnp4!npois!adam)
> 
> Natan Weinstock, in his book "Zionism, False Messiah" (Ink Links, 
> London, 1979) writes (p.235),
> 	"This disgusting massacre took place in the very month when
> 	the Haganah had negotiated a cooperation agreement with the Irgun.

The Irgun broke this agreement by the attack on Dir Yassin.

>	Moreover, according to the Palestine Post (a Jewish
> 	paper) of April 13th 1948, the Palmach units 'provided 
> 	covering fire' during the mass murder of men, women and
> 	children at Deir Yassin."

I find this hard to believe for two reasons. First, the only Palmach
units in the Jerusalem area at the time were stationed in the Old City
and in the Etzion block, both of which were cut off from the rest of the
city by Arab Legion forces. Thus, there was no way for them to be in
action anywhere near Dir Yassin. Second, the Palmach was led by
Communists and Left-Socialists; it reported to Moshe Sneh, later a
leader of the (largely Arab) Communist Party. It was also ethnically
mixed, including significant numbers of Druse, Beduin, and Christian
Arabs. Thus, even had they somehow managed to get there, they would have
been extremely unlikely to collaborate with Irgun and Stern. It is more
likely that the Palestine Post goofed.
					Adam Reed (ihnp4!npois!adam)