Mahal , Overseas Volunteers In Israel's Fighting Force - Israel At 60

AT 16, I WAS ONE OF THE MACHAL VOLUNTEERS WHO VOLUNTEERED TO FIGHT FOR ISRAEL IN 1948, AND I SERVED IN AN ANTITANK UNIT IN THE NEGEV. MY OLDER BROTHER WAS IN THE SAME UNIT AND WAS SEVERELY WOUNDED DURING THE FIGHTING AROUND FALUJA. ALTHOUGH IT'S TAKEN A LONG TIME, I'M DELIGHTED THAT IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, ISRAEL HAS STARTED TO TALK MORE ABOUT THE CRUCDIAL ROLE PLAYED BY THOSE VOLUNTEERS IN 1948. MY ONLY CRITICISM OF AN OTHERWISE FINE VIDEO IS THAT MIGDAL TEPERSON HAD THE NUMBER OF HIS VOLUNTEERS A LITTLE ASKEW. VOLUNTEERS FROM ENGLAND NUMBERED AROUND 650––NOT400, THE US HAD 1250, AND THE CANADIANS ABOUT 200. HE WAS CORRECT ABOUT THE 800 SOUTH AFRICANS, HOWEVER. THERE WERE ALSO 250 MACHAL VOLUNTEERS FROM NORTH AFRICA AND A SIMILAR NUMBER FROM LATIN AMERICA––ALTOGETHER ABOUT 3800 VOLUNTEERS WHO SERVED IN EVERY BRANCH OF THE IDF––MANY IN KEY COMMAND POSITIONS. 425 MACHALNIKS FLEW IN THE ISRAEL AIR FORCE, MAKING UP 95 PERCENT OF THE AIRCREWS. THE LANGUAGE OF THE ISRAEL AIR FORCE IN THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE WAS, BY NECESSITY, ENGLISH! AS MIGDAL POINTED OUT, THE MAJORITY OF MACHAL VOLUNTEERS WERE WW2 COMBAT VETERANS AND THEIR COMBAT EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE OF MILITARY COMMAND AND CONTROL ORGANIZATION WERE VITAL TO THE SUCCESS OF THE NEWLY FORMED IDF AND ULTIMATE VICTORY. B'SHALOM, DR JASON FENTON, '48 MACHAL