Operation Hiram

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Operation Hiram, possibly also known as the Battle of Sa'sa', was a military operation conducted by the Israel Defence Force (IDF) during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War It was led by General Moshe Carmel OC Northern Front, and aimed at capturing the upper Galilee region form the Arab Liberation Army (ALA) forces led by Fawzi al-Qawuqji and a Syrian Battalion.[1] The operation, which lasted just 60 hours (October 29-October 31) ended just before the ceasefire with the neighboring Arab countries went into effect. Its success ensured that the Upper Galilee, originally slated by the United Nations partition plan to be part of the Arab state of Palestine, would be controlled by the newly-formed state of Israel.

IDF soldiers in Sa'sa', 30 October 1948
IDF soldiers in Sa'sa', 30 October 1948

The Ground offensive was preceded by bombing raids targeting Tarshiha, Jish and Sa'sa from the 22 October, using B-17s and C-47s (Dakotas converted for ground support). The heaviest night of bombing was 29/30 October when 13 missions dropped 21 tons of bombs on the seven villages. The bombardment of Tarshiha triggered the mass flight after 24 of the inhabitants were killed and approximately 60 were buried under rubble.[2]

The initial thrust was carried out by the Seventh Brigade advancing from Safad. The Seventh Brigade occupied Qaddita, Meirun and then Safsaf and Jish. The 72nd and 79th battalions then turned West to take Sa'sa. After taking Sa'sa the Israeli forces then turned Northwest taking Kfar Birem, Saliha and by the afternoon of the 30 October were at al Malikiya.

The operation was launched in response to an attack on the Jewish settlement of Manara by the Arab Liberation Army led by Fawzi el-Kaukji. Four IDF brigades (the Seventh, Carmeli Brigade, Givati, and Oded Brigades) attacked. The Seventh and Oded brigades advanced in a pincer movement toward the village of Sa'sa', the former coming from the town of Safed and the latter from Nahariyya, passing by the village of Tarshiha. Simultaneously, the Golani Brigade engaged in diversionary tactics in the direction of the village of Illaboun. The Carmeli Brigade, which was assigned to counter attacks from Syria and Lebanon, crossed the border into Lebanon, captured 41 villages, and reached the Litani River.

At the end of this lightning attack, Israeli forces reached the Hiram Junction, north of Safed. The siege of Manara was lifted, Qawukji's army was destroyed, and the roads crossing the Upper Galilee were secured. With the Galilee under Israeli control, the IDF established a defensive line along Litani before withdrawing to the Lebanese border under the terms of the 1949 Armistice Agreements.

The Israeli air bombings caused considerable damage to the villages in the area. Ilan Pappe gives the example of the four villages: Rama, Suhmata, Malkiyya and Kfar Bir'im. He states that out of the four 'the only village to remain intact was Rama. The other three were occupied and destroyed' [3]. Very few villagers were allowed to stay in their homes and many were imprisoned or expelled to Lebanon and elsewhere. Ilan Pappe claims that the 'Hebrew noun tihur (cleansing) assumed new meanings' during this time period. He argues that although 'it still described, as before, the total expulsion and destruction of a village, it could now also represent other activities, such as selective search and expulsion operations' [4].

The name is a reference to Hiram, the Biblical king of Tyre. He was instrumental in construction of the First Temple.

Contents

[edit] Arab communities captured in Operation Hiram

Name Date Resistance Brigade Massacre
Al-Nabi Rubin Early October 1948 none n/a
Suhmata October 30, 1948 none Golani Brigade
Dayr al-Qassi October 30, 1948 none n/a
Arab al-Samniyya October 30-31, 1948 none 7th, Carmeli, Golani, Oded
Eilabun October 30, 1948 none Golani Documented, 14 dead
Iqrit October 31, 1948 none Oded Brigade
Iribbin, Khirbat October 31, 1948 none Oded Brigade
Kafr 'Inan October 30, 1948 none Golani Brigade
Marus October 30, 1948 none 7th Brigade
Mirun October 29, 1948 none 7th, Carmeli
Safsaf October 29, 1948 ALA 2nd Battalion  ?
Jish October 29, 1948 Syrian battalion 7th Brigade
Sa'sa October 30, 1949 none 7th, Druze unit
Suruh November 1948 none  ?
Tarbikha November 1948 none Oded Brigade

[edit] Brigades participating in Operation Hiram

[edit] See also

Eilaboun Massacre


v • d • e
Israeli military operations in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
Pre-IDF: Nachshon | Harel | Misparayim | Hametz | Yevusi | Yiftach | Matate | Balak | Maccabi | Gideon | Barak | Ben-Ami | Kilshon | Schfifon | Ben Nun
IDF: Erez | Ben Nun B | Yitzhak | Yoram | Dekel | Danny | Kedem | Hiram | Yoav | Horev | Assaf | Ovda

[edit] References

  1. ^ Institute for Palestine Studies Morris, Benny "Operation Hiram Revisited: A Correction" in 28, no. 2 (Win. 99): 68-76.
  2. ^ 'The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem revisited' page 473 Benny Morris Cambridge University press 2004
  3. ^ 'The ethnic cleansing of Palestine' page 181 Ilan Pappe Oneworld Publications Limited 2006
  4. ^ 'The ethnic cleansing of Palestine' page 182 Ilan Pappe Oneworld Publications Limited 2006