72ND BATTALION, 7TH BRIGADE
I was twenty-years-old and working in the fur trade earning a small wage. I was deeply troubled by the past – by the Jewish tragedies and sufferings through the centuries, and I was despondent to such a degree that I was having strong doubts about the Jewish future.
Palestine constantly featured in the news: the fighting between the Arabs and Jews under British rule, and the aspirations and possibilities of a Jewish homeland began to play a major part in my life. I remember attending Zionist meetings with my father in Poland as a young boy, and thought how happy and proud he would be for me to fight for the independence of a Jewish state. This signaled to me the salvation and security for the Jewish people. I was constantly listening to radio news broadcasts, and then came the news of the UN Resolution to partition Palestine, and Britain’s agreement to give up the Mandate, followed by Arab threats. I was inspired and committed to make my contribution in the struggle for a Jewish state.
At the beginning of 1948 the opportunity presented itself. News quietly spread that volunteers were needed to join the Jewish defense forces. I made an effort to find out more, and in time I went to a meeting and enlisted on the spot with a few young men with whom I associated and who were my friends. We attended another meeting somewhere in Willesden in a synagogue, and were briefed. In June we had our inoculations and were advised to be ready for call-up at any time. Not having attained British nationality, I did not have a passport. Instead I was issued with travel documents which were valid for one year. I obtained a visa for France on the pretence of going there on holiday.
The call came in July. We were informed that we would be met by an agent in Paris. In Dover we were thoroughly searched. Upon arrival at a station in Paris, we were met by an agent who organized supper for us, and briefed us. We were handed railway tickets, and that night we traveled to Marseilles, where we were met and taken to a nearby training camp in the hills. France at that time was very sympathetic to the Jewish cause.
Extensive commando training from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. included running, jumping, and climbing walls and mountains. We were not allowed to use weapons, so we trained with sticks and pretended that they were rifles. The training was so rigorous that some of the trainees fainted from heat and exhaustion. By the time we left, we were fit and able. Orders came for us to be ready. We were taken to an airport, and flown to Haifa. We arrived in Haifa and were taken directly to a Recruiting Centre at Tel Litwinsky where we were examined by doctors. We were issued with uniforms and given a three-day leave to look for family.
We then reported to the 72nd Battalion, an Anglo-Saxon infantry unit based not far from Nahariya. I was assigned to this unit because I came from the UK. The unit was in shambles at that time, as it was very new and disorganized. After a few days they gave each of us a rifle and twenty rounds of bullets, as well as two hand grenades for which we were responsible. The following night we were sent out to the trenches on the Lebanese border. We had hardly had any training with the army, and if we would have been attacked that night I don’t know what would have happened. A few days later we were taken back to camp, given two weeks training with arms, and then sent to the eastern Galilee. We slept in a cemetery in Safed. We started an attack at night and by early morning had taken Meron. Then I fell asleep near a tree (never have I slept so well in my life). When I woke up we started walking up mountains.
We sat there for a few hours, and then Kaujki’s forces started to shell us and for a while it was very frightening until the shelling stopped. I was a runner for Captain Appel, and he sent me down the mountain to bring up other soldiers who were taking over our positions.
I spent approximately ten months to one year in the army, and then I was discharged. I tried to find a job in Israel but it was impossible to find one. I did not have anywhere to live, so I decided to return to the UK. I was given an air ticket to London. On the way, one engine of the plane caught fire and I looked out of the window and saw the flames. Fortunately for us, the pilot managed to land at Valetta, Malta. We left the airport for Valetta and walked about for a few hours. The engine was repaired and we went on to Zurich, where I got a plane to London. I landed in Northolt Military Airport and was arrested because my travel documents had expired three days earlier. The immigration officer would not let me into London. I contacted the Jewish Refugee Committee, and they arranged for me to stay in the UK for three months. In the meantime, the immigration authority sent me a bill for the time I had spent under arrest. Apparently the Jewish Refugee Committee paid, and got permission for me to stay in England.
I regard that time of my life as a great fulfillment and reflect on it with much pride, not only for myself, but for all those who took part. A good percentage of our “45 Group” volunteered, and some came back and some stayed. When I look at Israel’s achievements since that time, and how it has endured conditions of wars and hostility, but now enjoys one of the strongest economies in the world, while absorbing a constant flow of new immigrants over the years, I am glad I was able to make my contribution.
Author: Sam Freiman