Mahal (Israel)

Mahal, more often spelled Machal (Hebrew: מח"ל), refers to the group of overseas volunteers who fought alongside Israeli forces during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.

Allied armies were reduced considerably after the end of the war and many soldiers were demobilised; moreover, the service experience became mundane and did not suit some servicemen, particularly pilots.

The 1948 Arab-Israeli War saw approximately 3500 foreign volunteers from 58 countries among the Jewish forces, out of an estimated 29,677–108,300 total (it grew considerably in size due to increasing levels of militarisation).

One of the most famous Machal volunteers was Mickey Marcus, a Jewish United States Army colonel who became Israel's first aluf (brigadier general).

Other important Mahalniks were Canadian officer Ben Dunkelman and U.S. pilot Milton Rubenfeld, and Major Wellesley Aron, an English-born Palestinian Jew who had commanded a unit in the British Army during World War II.

[13][14][15] Cargo flights flown by Mahal air crews transported weapons and supplies to Palestine from Europe, and thousands of Jewish refugees from Arab countries.

During the Egyptian Army siege of the Negev region in 1948, Mahal pilots airlifted thousands of tons of supplies to communities behind enemy lines, usually by night landings of large cargo planes and converted airliners on makeshift, unpaved sand runways, hand lit by oil lamps.

[citation needed] Logistic support of the founding of the IAF was provided by various diaspora groups which procured planes in the critical months of 1948–9.

Some remained to live in Israel; the village of Kfar Daniel near Lod was founded by Mahal veterans from North America and the United Kingdom.

"[19]Over the years, changing road configurations made accessibility to the Sha'ar HaGai memorial obscure with a corresponding, significant, drop off in visitation.