Pluga Yud – Hapluga Hayamit (Company Ten – the Naval Company)

The Palmach's Naval Company, the Palyam, was set up in April 1945 as the Palmach's tenth company which originated from the Palmach's Naval Platoon. The Company's first commander was Abraham Zakai. It belonged to the Fourth Battalion which was the Palmach's Staff Battalion. The company functioned as the heart of the Naval- Marine force of the Hagana organization. With time it grew until it included, on the eve of the War of Independence, some four hundred marines, eighty of them were graduates of the marine officers course which was held in the Marine School near the Technion, and seventy of them graduates of the ship commanders course at Kibbutz Sdot Yam.
The Palyam headquarters was situated in Kibbutz Sdot Yam. Additional bases and installations were located in Kibbutz Neve Yam, Ma'abarot, Giv'at Hashlosha, Shfayim and Yagur. After Zakai, the commanders of the Company were Yosef Ribkind (Yariv), Yosef (Yusuf) Brin- Gidron and Shmuel (Samekh) Yanai.
The Palyam's main role was to assist the Ma'apilim’s (illegal immigrants) landing in Palestine. During the years 1944-1948 the company's men participated in various operations which were related to the illegal immigration and the struggle against the British. They were trained in the sea and on land in order to fulfill their missions.