By Anthony Webber:
After defeating the Ottoman empire and taking Jerusalem in 1917 in the First World War, the United Kingdom took on the mandate for the state of Palestine.
Towards the end of the Second World War onwards extremist Zionist Jewish terrorists were actively involved in trying to end British rule.
The groups involved were the Irgun, Lehi and Hagannah ( less excessive than the former two).
They all were involved in violent terrorism. One major example was the bombing of the King David Hotel, a key British Headquarters, by Irgun.
91 people were killed and 46 injured, mostly civil servants, some police, military, and bystanders of different nationalities.
It was an attack which shocked the world. It was not an action moderate Jews supported.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_David_Hotel_bombing
The state of emergency in the British Mandate of Palestine lasted from September 1945 to 30th June 1948 ( when British troops left).
During that time754 British service personnel died because of Zionist Jewish terrorism.
This is the fourth greatest loss of life for the British military since the Second World War
( Malaya deaths over a 12-year period 1443, Northern Ireland deaths over a 38 year period 1441, and Korea deaths over a 3 year period 1129)
During that period in Palestine, there are at least 915 deaths recorded in the official Ministry of Defence Remembrance Roll of Honour of British personnel who were killed.
These were Army, Navy, Air Force, Royal Marines, British Police and British civil servants:
https://www.roll-of-honour.com/cgi-bin/palestine.cgi
It is not the complete list but records the majority of those killed.
The numbers of wounded were in their hundreds, the 6th Airbourne division alone reported236.
The British Police wounded were 475.
There were 100,000 British service personnel in Palestine, most of whom were young men doing their national service.
They were trying to keep order and stability in volatile circumstances where Arabs were concerned about the pending setting up of the state of Israel.
The sacrifices of these mainly young British men should be remembered and not airbrushed out of history for the sake of political expediency.
It is to be hoped that all of them, including those who wore the Palestine Clasp added to their General Service Medals, will be honoured in this Remembrance Sunday and Remembrance Day.
Anthony Webber
Independent Political Commentator
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