Havlagah

Example of the Havlagah strategy: a bus used by Jews with mesh covering the doors and windows in order to protect against Arab attacks during the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine.

Havlagah (Hebrew: הַהַבְלָגָה ha-Havlagah, lit. 'The Restraint') was the strategic policy of the Yishuv during the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. It called for Zionist militants to abstain from engaging in acts of retaliatory violence against Palestinian Arabs in the face of Arab attacks against Zionist Jews, and instead encouraged the Jewish community to respond to the attacks through non-violent means, such as by fortifying their settlements.

The policy was supported by the Yishuv's political leadership and many left-wing Zionists. It was adopted by Haganah, the main Zionist paramilitary in Mandate Palestine, as an official operational strategy.

On the other hand, Irgun, Lehi, and other like-minded Zionist paramilitaries rejected the policy and engaged in indiscriminate violence against the Arab community.[1]

  1. ^ Kessler, Oren (2023). Palestine 1936: The Great Revolt and the Roots of the Middle East Conflict. Lanham Boulder New York London: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-5381-4881-5.