Page 96 - big friday
P. 96
A mong these and other suggestions, the Sarona colony, located near Tel Aviv, was also
raised for discussion at one of the meetings. All of the virtues that were to be found in
greater or lesser measure in the other candidates, were regarded by the members of the
Provisional Government as being embodied in this site. Sarona was a German colony that
had been founded as far back as 1870 by Templers, a German Protestant sect. During the
Second World War they had been expelled, and the area served as a base for the British
police. When the British left the Tel Aviv area, they handed over Sarona to the Tel Aviv
municipality, whereupon it became the Tel Aviv regional headquarters of the Hagana.
And it was destined to become the headquarters of the government ministries. Today, this
is the government complex known as HaKirya.
The home, then, had been located. The keys were handed over to the future government.
While the harried and stressed members of the Provisional Government were over their
heads in the exhausting preparations for the ceremony, the British soldiers were preparing
to leave. Since the previous day they had been packing their belongings and repairing
cars, jeeps and armored cars for the journey out. The furniture piled in the streets and the
bags placed on the sidewalks, the waves goodbye and the handshakes were a sign to the
residents of the country to "take a deep breath" before letting out a sigh of relief: tonight at
midnight British rule comes to an end. At 00:01, local time, we will have a state!
"Hello! Hello! The State of Israel's broadcast station"
With all the joy over the exit of the English and "arrival" of the state, these were difficult
hours. One's heart was pained at the news of the fate of the hundreds of residents of Gush
Etzion, their unavoidable surrender, and at the sight of the telegram that arrived from
there, appearing on the morning of May 14, at 9:30am: "The women and men are being
sent on the Hebron road. The wounded are being transferred to Bethlehem… Thus ends
the saga of Gush Etzion. Tonight we will no longer be here."
A t the same time, battles had broken out in Jerusalem, and Hagana forces were gradually
spreading through most of the city's neighborhoods. The regional Hagana commander
declared a state of emergency and the mobilization of men and women aged 18-46. The
Yediot Yerushalayim newspaper carried the call: "Jews of Jerusalem – take up weapons!"
The city was almost completely cut off. Owing to interruptions in the electricity supply,
news broadcasts would not be heard, no newspapers would appear, and schools would be
closed.
The residents of Jerusalem felt as though they were trapped in a cage. And since no news
was reaching them via the usual channels, they began relying on their imagination, fed by
rumors that they picked up through the grape-vine. "Assessments of the situation" were
voiced by 'X' in the line for water; by women chatting with their neighbors; by worshippers
talking in the synagogue. In the evening, with the arrival of the Sabbath, rumors began to
94 The Friday That Changed Destiny
raised for discussion at one of the meetings. All of the virtues that were to be found in
greater or lesser measure in the other candidates, were regarded by the members of the
Provisional Government as being embodied in this site. Sarona was a German colony that
had been founded as far back as 1870 by Templers, a German Protestant sect. During the
Second World War they had been expelled, and the area served as a base for the British
police. When the British left the Tel Aviv area, they handed over Sarona to the Tel Aviv
municipality, whereupon it became the Tel Aviv regional headquarters of the Hagana.
And it was destined to become the headquarters of the government ministries. Today, this
is the government complex known as HaKirya.
The home, then, had been located. The keys were handed over to the future government.
While the harried and stressed members of the Provisional Government were over their
heads in the exhausting preparations for the ceremony, the British soldiers were preparing
to leave. Since the previous day they had been packing their belongings and repairing
cars, jeeps and armored cars for the journey out. The furniture piled in the streets and the
bags placed on the sidewalks, the waves goodbye and the handshakes were a sign to the
residents of the country to "take a deep breath" before letting out a sigh of relief: tonight at
midnight British rule comes to an end. At 00:01, local time, we will have a state!
"Hello! Hello! The State of Israel's broadcast station"
With all the joy over the exit of the English and "arrival" of the state, these were difficult
hours. One's heart was pained at the news of the fate of the hundreds of residents of Gush
Etzion, their unavoidable surrender, and at the sight of the telegram that arrived from
there, appearing on the morning of May 14, at 9:30am: "The women and men are being
sent on the Hebron road. The wounded are being transferred to Bethlehem… Thus ends
the saga of Gush Etzion. Tonight we will no longer be here."
A t the same time, battles had broken out in Jerusalem, and Hagana forces were gradually
spreading through most of the city's neighborhoods. The regional Hagana commander
declared a state of emergency and the mobilization of men and women aged 18-46. The
Yediot Yerushalayim newspaper carried the call: "Jews of Jerusalem – take up weapons!"
The city was almost completely cut off. Owing to interruptions in the electricity supply,
news broadcasts would not be heard, no newspapers would appear, and schools would be
closed.
The residents of Jerusalem felt as though they were trapped in a cage. And since no news
was reaching them via the usual channels, they began relying on their imagination, fed by
rumors that they picked up through the grape-vine. "Assessments of the situation" were
voiced by 'X' in the line for water; by women chatting with their neighbors; by worshippers
talking in the synagogue. In the evening, with the arrival of the Sabbath, rumors began to
94 The Friday That Changed Destiny
