'Military Lessons of the Arab Rebellion in Palestine 1936' [‎17v] (39/294)

8th - 11th July
44816-1
18
After ’’Operation X”, it was decided to abandon the village searches
which hsd outlived their usefulness! they were ■always distasteful to
the troops and furthermore gave rise to unne cess ary malicious propaganda.,
lia their place the milits.ry authorities presseu for the greater use of
other punitive measures including demolitions already legalised under
the Defence Order-in—Council^ but some time was ^o elapse before these
were to be applied in full. Meanwhile it had been found that hidden
dumps of old war-time ammunition were providing an endless source of
material for the bombs and mines which were being manufactured xndus*»
triously throughout the country. Searches were made for these dumps
and some 2,500 shells were destroyed by the Royal Engineers - mostly
6 -inch and 18-pr.
At this time the garrison was strengthened by further assistance
ashore from the Third Cruiser Squadron, and with the naval landing
parties came the first artillery to be brought into action against the
rebels. This consisted of 2-pr. pom-pom guns and searchlights mounted
in hired lorries. The first one went into action on the night of the
9th, and proved an immediate success. The R. Navy also fitted out and
manned two armoured trains, which were now put into use. Another
weapon which made its appearance in July was a 3-pr. gun mounted on a
lorry, manned by a detachment of Royal Artillery released from the
Fixed Defence-s of Haifa on the conclusion of*the "Italian Emergency".
It was later taken over by the Navy when the Haifa Heavy Battery was
v/ithdrawn to England early in August. Two Battalions were now in pos
session of mortars, and these had been adapted successfully to fire from
a lorry. On the 11 th July, No. 33 (Bomber) Squadron, less the flight
already at Ramleh, moved from Egypt to Amman and was later concentrated
at Gaza.
12th - 16th July
The reinforcements which the A.O.C. had asked for at the beginning
of the month were now arriving. The armoured cars of the 11th Hussars
(Prince Albert’s Own) came by train from Cairo between the 14th and 16 th
and were allotted to the Northern Brigade, all R.A.F. armoured cars then
being concentrated in the South. On the 18th the "Neuralia" from Malta
brought the 2nd Bn. The Lincolnshire Regiment, the 2 nd Bn. The South
Wales Borderers, and a Brigade Signal Section. The tv/o infantry
battalions were allotted to the North and South respectively, thus hr lap
ing each Brigade up to a strength of four battalions. Nov/ at last the
strength of the garrison was sufficient to provide some striking forces
for offensive purposes without weakening the defence of vulnerable
points and communications. The latter were soon protected in places
by picquets, while convoy escorts were strong enough to ensure, in con
junction with the Air Striking Force, very hard hits against any rebels
encountered. Though hostile opposition v/as hardening, the authorities
now felt confident that any armed concentration could rapidly 'be brought
to action and heavily punished.
In the meantime attacks on trains and convoys and acts of violence
of all sorts continued incessantly, and the lists of casualties on both
sides were growing steadily. 5 members of the British Forces, 41 Jews
and some 150 Arabs had been killed, and more than twice that number
seriously injured, while the damage to Jewish property alone amounted
t0 more ^Ean ^zOOjOOO, On the 13th an action was fought near Jenin by
the Loyals and R. signals following upon an attack on a telegraph line
repaii party, and 8 Arabs were killed. The same day an aircraft
dropped four 20-lb bombs on a band near Qalqilya causing considerable
casualties, of which four deaths were definitely confirmed; while
three more were killed and several wounded in -an action near Safad.
Two officers were wounded on the Jerusalem-Nablus road on the 15th