The deadliest attack on British forces during the Palestine Mandate era, killing 91 people and accelerating debate over Britain's control of Palestine.
Key Facts
- Date
- 22 July 1946
- Deaths
- 91 people
- Injured
- 46 people
- Perpetrator
- Irgun (right-wing Zionist underground)
- Warning time before blast
- 15 minutes (alleged)
- Target
- British Mandate Secretariat & military HQ
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Irgun sought to destroy documents seized during Operation Agatha — British raids on Jewish Agency offices — that implicated the Agency in anti-British operations. The attack was originally sanctioned by the Haganah, though that approval was cancelled without the Irgun's knowledge before the operation proceeded.
On 22 July 1946, Irgun operatives disguised as Arab workmen and hotel staff planted explosives in the basement of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, whose southern wing housed the British Mandate Secretariat and military headquarters. The blast collapsed the western half of the southern wing, killing 91 people of Arab, British, and Jewish nationalities and injuring 46 others.
The bombing became the deadliest single attack against the British during the entire Mandate period (1920–1948) and generated intense international controversy over warnings and responsibility. It intensified pressure on Britain over its Palestine policy and remains a deeply contested event in the history of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and political violence.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent