'Military Lessons of the Arab Rebellion in Palestine 1936' [‎12v] (29/294)

8th - 11th May
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The next four days passed in comparative quiet, though bombing was
plainly on the increase and attempts at sabotage on the railway were
becoming more frequent and more serious, culminating in an attack on one
of the most important bridges south of Gaaa which, if successful, would
have cut communication with Egypt. Some disturbances also occurred in
Jerusalem.
It was necessary to take elaborate precautions to ensure the safe
passage of the troop trains from Egypt, and on the 10th detachments of
Camerons from Jerusalem were moved down to the railway. All went well
however, and during the night the 1st Bn. Royal Scots Fusiliers with two
sections of light tanks reached Sarafand, while the remainder of "C" Coy,
6 thBn. Royal Tank Corps, went on to Haifa. The following day two
sections of No.l Armoured Car Coy. R.A.F. arrived by road from Iraq, and
were attached to No. 2 Company at Rami eh.
12th - 16th May .
By this time it had become evident that the rebellion, while
continuing to hold its own, was making little headway and there was
growing apathy with regard to the national strike movement. Accordingly
members of the Higher Committee and other delegations paid a round of
visits with a view to strengthening the strike and raising the national
spirit in the country districts. It was unfortunate that official
steps were not taken to stop this, for its immediate results were soon
apparent and there is no doubt that it marked a turning point in the
rebellion. Unrest occurred again in Jaffa, and in Jerusalem two Jews
were murdered: acts of violence and sabotage started to increase, and
in the North a new era of lawlessness began.
The situation demanded fresh military measures. The Royal Scots
Fusiliers with some armoured cars were despatched to Gaza and, in view
of the troublesome condition of the Jordan Valley, a half company of
mechanised infantry of the Frontier Force was moved from Trans«-Jordan
to Jericho. Meanwhile air reconnaissances were increased, and armoured
cars and tanks patrolled various districts. On the 14th a convoy
system under military protection was instituted for both civil and
military traffic on the main roads.
17th - 20th May
Late at night on the 16th May a particularly brutal outrage occurred
in Jerusalem which profoundly disturbed the Jewish population and which
resulted in a nightly curfew which was not to be lifted for some six
months. At 9.15 p.m. one or two unidentified individuals entered a
crowded cinema in the Jewish residential quarter and fired five shots
into the audience. Three Jews were killed and two nore injured, while
tne assailants escaped unscathed. The following day there was much
shooting in Jerusalem and Haifa, and another murder was committed in
oroad daylight in Jerusalem where an Austrian was shot dead in a busy
street, the murderer again escaping.
On the 18th it was announced that a Royal Commission would proceed
to Palestine as soon as order had been restored; but the announcement
had no appreciable ^ effect on the local situation. It was clear that
the centre of gravity was beginning to shift from the towns to the
country districts, and a number of military columns carried out a series
of marches to "show the flag". Meanwhile the list of outrages steadily
grew longer and the toll of murder claimed almost daily victims. The
spread of revolt across the rural areas altered the military problem,
and further reinforcements were asked for. These were particularly