Israel The Bombing Of The King David Hotel
On July 22, 1946, the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, then part of British Mandate Palestine, was rocked by a devastating explosion that killed 91 people and injured 46 others. The attack, carried out by the Irgun, a Zionist paramilitary group, targeted the hotel because it housed the British administrative headquarters, including military and intelligence offices. The bombing remains one of the most significant and controversial events in the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, symbolizing the escalating tensions between Jewish groups, British authorities, and Arab communities in the lead-up to the establishment of Israel in 1948.
The King David Hotel, an elegant seven-story building in Jerusalem, was more than a luxury hotel in 1946. Its southern wing served as the nerve center of British governance in Palestine, housing the Secretariat of the Mandate Government, British military headquarters, and intelligence offices. The British Mandate, established by the League of Nations in 1920, aimed to administer Palestine following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. However, the Mandate period was marked by growing friction among the British, Jewish immigrants seeking a homeland, and the Arab population, who felt their aspirations for self-determination were being sidelined.
By the mid-1940s, Jewish groups were increasingly frustrated with British policies, particularly the 1939 White Paper, which restricted Jewish immigration and land purchases in response to Arab concerns. The Holocaust, which claimed six million Jewish lives, intensified demands for a Jewish state, and groups like the Irgun and Lehi (Stern Gang) resorted to armed resistance against British rule. The Irgun, led by Menachem Begin (later Israel’s prime minister), saw the British as occupiers obstructing the Zionist cause.
The Irgun’s decision to bomb the King David Hotel was part of a broader campaign called the “Jewish Resistance Movement,” a temporary alliance between the Irgun, Lehi, and the more moderate Haganah. The operation aimed to destroy sensitive British documents in the hotel’s offices, which the Irgun believed were being used to suppress Jewish resistance, and to weaken British resolve to maintain the Mandate.
The plan was meticulously prepared. Irgun operatives, disguised as Arab workers, smuggled milk churns filled with 350 kilograms of explosives into the hotel’s basement, specifically under the Regence Café, which was adjacent to the British offices. The bombs were set to detonate at 12:37 p.m., and the Irgun claimed they issued warnings to minimize civilian casualties. According to their account, they telephoned the hotel, the French Consulate nearby, and the Palestine Post newspaper, urging evacuation. However, these warnings were either ignored, misunderstood, or not acted upon in time by the British authorities.
At 12:37 p.m., the explosion tore through the hotel’s southern wing, collapsing part of the structure. The blast killed a diverse group of victims: 28 British, 41 Arabs, 17 Jews, and 5 others of various nationalities, including hotel staff, government officials, and civilians. The devastation shocked Palestine and the world, drawing attention to the escalating violence in the region.
The bombing had immediate and far-reaching consequences. The British government condemned the attack as an act of terrorism, and it strained relations between the British and the Jewish community in Palestine. The Haganah, which had initially approved the operation, distanced itself from the Irgun, claiming the scale of destruction was unintended. The Irgun, however, defended the attack, arguing it was a legitimate act of war against a colonial power and that warnings had been given to avoid loss of life.
The question of the warnings remains contentious. British officials, including the hotel’s chief secretary, Sir John Shaw, denied receiving any clear or timely warning. Some historians suggest the British underestimated the threat or were skeptical of the Irgun’s intentions, while others argue the warnings were deliberately vague or poorly communicated. Menachem Begin, in his memoir The Revolt, insisted the Irgun took every precaution to avoid civilian deaths, but critics point to the high casualty toll as evidence of reckless planning.
Internationally, the bombing drew mixed reactions. In Britain, it fueled calls to withdraw from Palestine, as public opinion grew weary of the costly Mandate. In the United States, it complicated Zionist efforts to gain support, as the attack was widely reported as a terrorist act. For Arabs in Palestine, the bombing heightened fears of Jewish militancy, deepening communal mistrust.
The King David Hotel bombing accelerated the collapse of the British Mandate.
By 1947, Britain, exhausted by World War II and unable to reconcile Jewish and
Arab demands, referred the Palestine question to the United Nations. The UN’s
partition plan, approved in November 1947, led to the establishment of Israel
in 1948, followed by the first Arab-Israeli war.
The bombing also shaped the legacy of the Irgun and its leaders. Menachem Begin, vilified by the British as a terrorist, later became a respected statesman, signing Israel’s peace treaty with Egypt in 1979. The attack remains a point of debate: for some Israelis, it was a bold strike against colonial oppression; for others, including Palestinians and British historians, it was a tragic act of terrorism that set a precedent for violence in the conflict.
Today, the King David Hotel stands as a symbol of Jerusalem’s turbulent history. A plaque at the site commemorates the attack, noting the Irgun’s role and the loss of life. The bombing is studied as a case study in asymmetric warfare, the ethics of resistance, and the complexities of colonial withdrawal.
The event underscores the challenges of navigating competing national aspirations in a volatile region. For Palestinians, it is a reminder of the violence that accompanied the path to Israel’s creation. For Israelis, it reflects the desperate measures taken to secure a homeland. For the British, it marked a turning point in their retreat from empire.
As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict persists, the bombing of the King David Hotel remains a stark reminder of how acts of violence, however strategically motivated, leave lasting scars on all sides. Its lessons—about communication, proportionality, and the human cost of conflict—continue to resonate in discussions of peace and justice in the Middle East.