Between November 1947 and May 1948, the Yishuv is spectacularly successful against vast odds. Haganah evolves into a full army, and a few Spitfires, corvettes and PT boats create an embryonic air force and navy. Experience and victory breed confidence, and the Jews optimize their organizational abilities. Those who believe the Arabs are bluffing get a rude awakening when the British-led Arab Legion butchers Kibbutz Etzion on the Bethlehem Road, and only intervention by the International Red Cross keeps three nearby settlements from sharing this fate. The Arab Legion attacks Beth Ha-Arava ("House in the Wilderness") in the barren Negev Desert, which settlers have turned into irrigated farmland. Hopeless, the Jews surrender after scorching earth and homes.
On May 13, 1948, the British Jack, symbol of the misuse of power, is struck.....
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