The Platoon of the Wall (Plugat Hakotel, Hebrew: פלוגת הכותל) was a group made up of Betar members in Mandatory Palestine that defended the rights of Jews at the Western Wall in the years 1937-1938, and guarded the Old City using concealed stores of arms and clubs and accompanied Jewish worshipers to and from the Western Wall.[1][2] Members were also responsible for the blowing of the shofar at the Western Wall, which was deemed illegal by the British authorities.

Plugat HaKotel street in the Old City of Jerusalem near the corner where the Plugat HaKotel museum is located

On the evening of October 29, 1937, as a result of Arabs shooting at such a group, one Jew was killed and three wounded.[3][4]

Legacy

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Street

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A street in the Old City of Jerusalem is named in its honor, "Plugat HaKotel Street".

Museum

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On May 15, 2018 the Beit Plugat HaKotel (lit. 'Platoon of the [Western] Wall House') museum was inaugurated at a special ceremony in the Old City of Jerusalem.[5][6] The building was used as the Plugat HaKotel headquarters. It was later used to house IDF soldiers for special programming and for tour groups, specifically from the Betar youth group to which the original Plugat HaKotel members belonged.[7] 97-year-old Yaakov (Sika) Aharoni, the last original member was in attendance and met with present-day Betar youth.[8][9]

Notes

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  1. ^ Eisenberg, 2006, pp. 295-296.
  2. ^ "'פלוגת הכותל'". www.kotar.co.il. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  3. ^ http://jpress.nli.org.il/Olive/APA/NLI/get/pdf.ashx?pdf=3xuDUnytqo9eWlsBXDkwxmM%3D
  4. ^ "Jew Killed, 2 Wounded in Jerusalem; Troops Hunt Bands Near Nablus | Jewish Telegraphic Agency". www.jta.org. 31 October 1937. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  5. ^ "80 שנה לאחר שנסגר ע"י הבריטים, בית פלוגת הכותל נפתח מחדש ברובע היהודי בירושלים - 0404". 0404 (in Hebrew). 2018-05-16. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  6. ^ "'Platoon of the Wall' House to reopen for first time in 80 years". Israel National News. 28 March 2018. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  7. ^ "Plugat HaKotel Museum Open to The Public, Memories". shilohmusings.blogspot.co.il. 29 March 2018. Retrieved 2018-05-24.
  8. ^ להורדה, הרבה יותר נוח לגלוש באפליקציית חדשות 20, לחץ עכשיו. "הנערים שתקעו בשופר בכותל, למורת רוח הבריטים, משחזרים". www.20il.co.il (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2018-05-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ "Yaakov-Sika Aharoni". www.etzel.org.il. Retrieved 2018-05-24.

References

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  • Eisenberg, Ronald L. (2006). The Streets of Jerusalem: Who, What, Why. Devora Publishing. ISBN 978-1-932687-54-5