Moshe Kelman

Moshe Kelman was the operational commander of the Palmach's Third Battalion in 1948.

Moshe Kelman (left) with Yigal Allon, 1948.

On 15 February 1948 Kelman led a force of 60 men which attacked the remote village Sa'sa', in the Upper Galilee. The operation coincided with a number of other attacks on Arab targets. Its intention was to demonstrate that no village was beyond the reach of the Haganah. Kelman had orders to "blow up twenty houses and kill the largest possible number of fighters." During the night-time attack ten houses where destroyed or damaged and "tens" of people killed.^[1] Kelman is quoted as saying 35 houses were demolished and 60 - 80 killed.^[2][3]

On 3 or 4 May 1948, during Operation Yiftach, Kelman ordered the shooting of "70 or so" Arab prisoners in a gulley close to Safad.^[4] Afterwards a female member of the Palmach, Netiva Ben-Yehuda, was ordered, with others, to the untie ropes from the dead when it was feared that the bodies might be discovered by members of the Red Cross who were visiting the area.^[5] Ilan Pappe states that one of the reasons for this and "many other mass killings" was that the Haganah did not have facilities for large numbers of prisoners.^[6]

On 12 July 1948, during Operation Danny, Kelman was in command of the 3rd Battalion in Lydda. After an out-break of gun-fire his troops were ordered to shoot at "any clear target" and at anyone "seen on the streets". In two and a half hours "some 250" people were killed, "and many wounded."^[7]

References

1. ^ Khalidi, Walid. "All That Remains".1992, ISBN 0 88728 224 5. Page 496. Quoting "The History of the Haganah" and the "New York Times", 16/2/1948. The NYT report states 11 killed including 5 small children.
2. ^ Pappe, Ilan. "The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine". One World Publications. 2006. ISBN 1 85168 467 0. Page 78. Gives source: Ever Nun, Israel (ed), "The Yiftach-Palmach Story". (Bat Yam: Palmach Publications, no date) (Hebrew).
3. ^ Kimche, Jon and David (1960) A Clash of Destinies. The Arab-Jewish War and the Founding of the State of Israel. Frederick A. Praeger. Library of Congress number 60-6996. Page 84.
4. ^ Morris, Benny. "The birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem",1987. ISBN 0 521 33028 9. Page 102.
5. ^ Morris, page 321. From Netiva Ben-Yehuda, "Miba'ad La'avutot" (Through the Binding Ropes), Jerusalem, Domino Press, 1985, pp 243-8.
6. ^ Pappe. Page 113.
7. ^ Morris, pages 205, 206.

Persondata
Name	Kelman, Moshe
Alternative names
Short description	Israeli soldier
Date of birth
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death