Haifa Oil Refinery massacre
Encyclopedia
The Haifa Oil Refinery massacre took place on 30 December 1947. After operatives of the Zionist
paramilitary organisation, the Irgun
, threw a number of grenades at a crowd of 100 Arab
day-labourers who had gathered outside the main gate of the then British-owned Haifa Oil Refinery
looking for work, six people were killed and 42 wounded. Minutes following this attack, Arab refinery workers and others began attacking the Jewish refinery workers, resulting in 39 deaths and 49 injuries, before British army
and Palestine Police units arrived to put an end to the violence. Haganah
later retaliated by attacking two nearby Arab villages, while skirmishes followed in Haifa
.
. On 30 December 1947, Irgun militants hurled two bombs into a crowd of Arab workers from a passing vehicle. The Etzel (Irgun) who planned the attack on the day laborers said it was in retaliation for recent attacks elsewhere on Jews in Palestine
. After 6 workers were killed and 42 wounded, Arab workers stormed the refinery armed with tools and metal rods, beating 39 Jewish workers to death and wounding 49. The Arab constabulary
was accused of complicity, although some sources say Arab police helped to escort 30-40 Jews out of the building at the height of the violence. British forces arrived only an hour after the riot started. According to the Jewish Agency
, some Arab workers helped their Jewish co-workers hide or escape.
The Haganah
mounted a retaliatory raid
on the villages of Balad al-Shaykh and Hawsha
, where some of the Arab refinery workers lived. They fired into and blew up houses. Some women and children were injured when, according to Haganah accounts, Arabs returned fire from the houses. Haganah estimates of the number of Arabs killed varied from 21 to 70, including one woman. In addition two Haganah soldiers were killed during the fight.
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
paramilitary organisation, the Irgun
Irgun
The Irgun , or Irgun Zevai Leumi to give it its full title , was a Zionist paramilitary group that operated in Mandate Palestine between 1931 and 1948. It was an offshoot of the earlier and larger Jewish paramilitary organization haHaganah...
, threw a number of grenades at a crowd of 100 Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
day-labourers who had gathered outside the main gate of the then British-owned Haifa Oil Refinery
Oil Refineries Ltd
Oil Refineries Ltd. , located in Haifa Bay, is Israel's largest Oil refinery. Using its state-of-the-art industrial facilities, ORL is capable of refining approximately 9.8 million tons of crude oil per year providing a variety of products used in industrial operation, transportation, private...
looking for work, six people were killed and 42 wounded. Minutes following this attack, Arab refinery workers and others began attacking the Jewish refinery workers, resulting in 39 deaths and 49 injuries, before British army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
and Palestine Police units arrived to put an end to the violence. Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
later retaliated by attacking two nearby Arab villages, while skirmishes followed in Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
.
Background
Relations between Jews and Arabs at the refinery were known to be good. However, tensions rose in 1947-48 in the wake of the 1947 UN Partition Plan1947 UN Partition Plan
The United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine was created by the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine in 1947 to replace the British Mandate for Palestine with "Independent Arab and Jewish States" and a "Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem" administered by the United...
. On 30 December 1947, Irgun militants hurled two bombs into a crowd of Arab workers from a passing vehicle. The Etzel (Irgun) who planned the attack on the day laborers said it was in retaliation for recent attacks elsewhere on Jews in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. After 6 workers were killed and 42 wounded, Arab workers stormed the refinery armed with tools and metal rods, beating 39 Jewish workers to death and wounding 49. The Arab constabulary
Constabulary
Constabulary may have several definitions.*A civil, non-paramilitary force consisting of police officers called constables. This is the usual definition in Britain, in which all county police forces once bore the title...
was accused of complicity, although some sources say Arab police helped to escort 30-40 Jews out of the building at the height of the violence. British forces arrived only an hour after the riot started. According to the Jewish Agency
Jewish Agency for Israel
The Jewish Agency for Israel , also known as the Sochnut or JAFI, served as the organization in charge of immigration and absorption of Jews from the Diaspora into the state of Israel.-History:...
, some Arab workers helped their Jewish co-workers hide or escape.
The Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
mounted a retaliatory raid
Balad al-Shaykh massacre
Balad al-Shaykh, was an Arab village, now part of the Israeli town of Nesher where a massacre was perpetrated on the night of December 31, 1947, to January 1, 1948...
on the villages of Balad al-Shaykh and Hawsha
Hawsha
Hawsha was a Palestinian village located east of Haifa, about above sea level. It contained a maqam for Nabi Hushan, and a number of ancient ruins, including rock-cut tombs, and a mosaic floor....
, where some of the Arab refinery workers lived. They fired into and blew up houses. Some women and children were injured when, according to Haganah accounts, Arabs returned fire from the houses. Haganah estimates of the number of Arabs killed varied from 21 to 70, including one woman. In addition two Haganah soldiers were killed during the fight.
External links
- Palestine Post 31 December 1947 front page and continuation
- 'The British Withdrawal From Palestine: Possible Advance Of Date By Six Weeks, 17 Killed In Attack On Arab Village', The Times, Friday, 2 January 1948; pg. 4; Issue 50958; col A.