Bruna - The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib
"The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" Haapala ship departed from Migliarino port in Italy on July 16th 1947, with 685 immigrants on board.
The Haapala ship, "The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib," departed from Migliarino port in Italy on July 16th 1947, with 685 immigrants on board. The ship commander was Palyam member, Eliezer Klein (Tal.) The 'Gidoni' (wireless operator) was Izhak Breuer. Additional escorts were Palyam members Ze'ev Paz, Shalom Dolitsky and Uri Horovitz.
"The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" was scheduled to meet the "Shivat Zion" Haapala ship, which left a day earlier from Algiers, and absorb its immigrants, but the ships never met due to communication problems between them. "The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" was spotted by a British destroyer on July 26th, while in the Messina Straits in southern Italy. Three destroyers tailed it as in neared Haifa port on July 28th. The ship arrived in Israel two days after the dramatic exposure of the deported immigrants of the "Exodus" Haapala ship in France.
Under those new circumstances, and fearing that the British may send "The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" back to Europe as well, the ship was given an order: Not to resist the takeover of the British crew on board the ship and allow the immigrants to board the deportation ship, if the British intended to send them to Cyprus. The escorts sufficed with a deliberate sabotage of the ship's engine, which forced the British to tow it to Haifa port.
The following day, the immigrants were transferred to the "Empire Comfort" deportation ship, and were taken to a detention camp in Cyprus. The escorts hid on board the ship and managed to escape without being caught.
"The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" was scheduled to meet the "Shivat Zion" Haapala ship, which left a day earlier from Algiers, and absorb its immigrants, but the ships never met due to communication problems between them. "The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" was spotted by a British destroyer on July 26th, while in the Messina Straits in southern Italy. Three destroyers tailed it as in neared Haifa port on July 28th. The ship arrived in Israel two days after the dramatic exposure of the deported immigrants of the "Exodus" Haapala ship in France.
Under those new circumstances, and fearing that the British may send "The Fourteen Fallen of Gesher A-Zib" back to Europe as well, the ship was given an order: Not to resist the takeover of the British crew on board the ship and allow the immigrants to board the deportation ship, if the British intended to send them to Cyprus. The escorts sufficed with a deliberate sabotage of the ship's engine, which forced the British to tow it to Haifa port.
The following day, the immigrants were transferred to the "Empire Comfort" deportation ship, and were taken to a detention camp in Cyprus. The escorts hid on board the ship and managed to escape without being caught.