called "terrorists", Israel has been accused by Britain
of feting Jewish "terrorists" whose bomb attack killed
28 Britons 60 years ago today.
The accusation, which reopens the debate about the use
of politically-inspired violence in the region, follows the
unveiling of a plaque commemorating the attack on the
King David hotel in Jerusalem on July 22, 1946, by the
Irgun Jewish "resistance" to British mandate rule in
Palestine. The 28 Britons were among 91 people killed.
This week, former Irgun fighters and current Right-wing
politicians unveiled the plaque at the hotel, which read:
"The hotel housed the Mandate Secretariat as well as the
Army Headquarters. On July 22, 1946, Irgun fighters at
the order of the Hebrew Resistance Movement planted
explosives in the basement. Warning phone calls had been
made urging the hotel's occupants to leave immediately.
For reasons known only to the British, the hotel was not
evacuated and after 25 minutes the bombs exploded,
and to the Irgun's regret and dismay 91 persons were killed."
But Israel's celebration of its "freedom fighters" remains highly
controversial at a time when it continues to pound Palestinian so called
"terrorists".
Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, has found herself
deeply embroiled in the debate - her father, Eitan, was Irgun's
chief operations officer.
Simon Macdonald, the British ambassador to Israel, and
consul general John Jenkins, wrote to the mayor of Jerusalem
protesting at the plaque.
"We don't think it's right for an act of terrorism to be
commemorated," their letter read.
The embassy said: "There is no credible evidence that any
warning reached the British authorities." The plaque has
subsequently been amended, dropping the implication that
Britain ignored any warnings.
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