1946 King David Hotel Bombing

1946 King David Hotel Bombing - Zionist ’Israel’ the Founding Fathers of Modern Terrorism King David Hotel Bombing The King David Hotel bombing was an attack carried out by the militant right-wing Zionist underground organisation, the Irgun, on the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on 22 July 1946. Irgunists, disguised as Arabs, planted a bomb in the basement of the main building of the hotel, under the wing which housed the Mandate Secretariat and part of the British military headquarters. The ensuing explosion caused the collapse of the western half of the southern wing of the hotel. As a result of this, 91 people are killed, most of them civilians: 41 Arabs; 28 British; 17 Jews; and 5 others. Around 46 people are injured. Motivation for the bombing The King David Hotel was the site for the British Military Command in Palestine. It also served as the headquarters of the British Criminal Investigation Division. The Irgun aimed at destroying the southern wing of the hotel, which housed the Mandate’s intelligence records about Irgun, the Hagana, Lehi, and other Jewish paramilitary groups. The larger goal was to drive the British out of Palestine, and to pit the British against the Palestinian Arabs if Arabs are successfully framed for the bombing. The British soon realize governing Palestine is too much trouble, leaving 2 years later, and the state of Israel is born in 1948. Future Israeli Prime Minister, Menachem Begin, then leader of the Irgun On July 1, 1946, Moshe Sneh, chief of the Haganah General Headquarters, sent a letter to the then leader of the Irgun, Menachem Begin, which instructed him to “carry out the operation at the “chick“, code for the King David Hotel.“ When he was asked by prominent journalist, Russell Warren Howe, if he considered himself the father of terrorism in the Middle East, Menachem Begin proudly replied, “No, in the entire whole world.” Israelis Celebrate the Bombing and Admire the Terrorists as Heroes In July 2006, Israelis, including the past and future Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former members of Irgun, attended a 60th anniversary celebration of the bombing, which was organized by the Menachem Begin Centre