Battles of Latrun

Overview

The Battles of Latrun were a series of military engagements between the Israel Defense Forces and the Jordanian Arab Legion on the outskirts of Latrun between 25 May and 18 July 1948, during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Latrun takes its name from the monastery close to the junction of two major highways: Jerusalem to Jaffa/Tel Aviv and Gaza to Ramallah. During the British Mandate it became a Palestine Police base with a Tegart fort. The United Nations Resolution 181 placed this area within the proposed Arab state. In May 1948, it was under the control of the Arab Legion. It commanded the only road linking the Yishuv-controlled area of Jerusalem to Israel, giving Latrun strategic importance in the battle for Jerusalem.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

Latrun's strategic value during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War derived from its position at the junction of two major highways connecting Jerusalem to Jaffa/Tel Aviv and Gaza to Ramallah. In May 1948 the site was held by the Arab Legion, giving it control over the only road linking Yishuv-held Jerusalem to the rest of Israel. The series of engagements fought between the Israel Defense Forces and the Arab Legion between late May and mid-July 1948 were therefore directly tied to the battle for Jerusalem: Israeli failure to dislodge the Arab Legion meant the road remained contested or closed, with direct consequences for supply and reinforcement of Jewish-held areas of the city. The location had carried administrative weight under the British Mandate as a Palestine Police base with a Tegart fort, and the UN partition plan had placed the area within the proposed Arab state, meaning Arab Legion control was a continuation of a prior political assignment. The fights at Latrun thus sat at the intersection of the military and political contests over Jerusalem that defined a central front of the 1948 war.

Commanders (3)