“The Truth About the ‘King David Hotel” – A poster issued by the Irgun, published exactly one year after the bombing of the King David Hotel by its members. The poster details, in ten sections, previously unknown facts regarding the determination of the timing of the bombing, and the dispute with members of the ‘Jewish Resistance Movement’, who are blamed for the deaths of the innocent victims in the bombing. July 22, 1947.
“A year after the attack on the centers of Nazi-British rule – on the main headquarters of the occupation army and the chief secretariat of the occupation government – we find it our duty to reveal to the Hebrew public all the facts related to this attack.”
The organization, exactly one year after carrying out the bombing attack at the King David Hotel by its members, reveals various details regarding the planning and execution of the operation, and places the blame for the killing of innocent civilians on members of the “Jewish Resistance Movement.” The poster states that the plan was conceived as early as the spring of 1946, but was postponed for various reasons. The plan was to allow evacuation of the building by issuing an early warning in order to avoid harming the Jewish population present in the hotel. On July 1, the order to carry out the operation was received from the headquarters of the “Jewish Resistance Movement”, as a response to the British raid on the “National Institutions”. After further delays, mainly due to technical reasons, the date of the attack was set for July 22. Immediately following the attack, a dispute broke out between Irgun members and members of the Jewish Resistance Movement regarding the cause of the large number of casualties resulting from the operation, due to conflicting instructions about the exact timing of the attack on that day. In order to clarify the truth, Irgun representatives requested the appointment of an arbitrator to determine the facts between their claims and those of the Jewish Resistance Movement. However, the latter refused any discussion.
In conclusion, the following is written: “We remained silent for an entire year, we endured wild incitement the likes of which had never been seen in this land… But today, after the ‘Jewish Resistance Movement’ has passed away and there is not even a hope that it will be revived… now the truth may be revealed: now the truth must be revealed.”
The Hebrew Resistance Movement was established in October 1945 as a temporary union of the three underground organizations: the Haganah, the Irgun, and Lehi, with the aim of jointly resisting British rule in Palestine following the end of World War II. The idea was to coordinate military and political actions through collective responsibility, in order to advance the struggle for the establishment of a Jewish state. The King David Hotel served as the center of British administration in Palestine. The Irgun regarded it as a legitimate sabotage target, aiming to strike at the British intelligence archive. Under the command of Menachem Begin, the Irgun carried out the bombing after issuing an advance telephone warning, but the warning went unheeded. The explosion killed 91 people, Jews, Britons, and Arabs — and injured dozens more. The Irgun claimed that the operation had been approved by the Coordination Committee of the Hebrew Resistance Movement, and that prior warning had been given for the area to be evacuated (which they argued was ignored by the British). The hotel itself, they claimed, was a legitimate military target, a center of government and intelligence. In contrast, members of the Resistance Movement denied approving the operation in its final form, and both the Jewish National Council and the Jewish Agency issued a harsh public condemnation of the bombing. Following the operation and the public outcry it provoked, the Hebrew Resistance Movement disbanded. The Haganah chose to return to a policy of restraint and to pursue a path of “moderate and controlled resistance.” In contrast, the Irgun and Lehi continued operating as independent forces, with the Irgun even intensifying its actions against the British until the establishment of the State of Israel.
[1] leaf. 32×32 cm. Good condition.
