Raising the Ink Flag at Umm Rashrash (Eilat)

The Ink Flag ( he, דֶּגֶל הַדְּיוֹ, ''Degel HaDyo'') was a handmade

Israeli flag The flag of Israel ( he, דגל ישראל '; ar, علم إسرائيل ') was adopted on 28 October 1948, five months after the establishment of the Israel, State of Israel. It depicts a blue hexagram on a white background, between two horizo ...

raised in March 1949 during the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...

to mark the capture of Umm Rashrash.

History

On 5 March 1949, Israel launched

Operation Uvda Operation Uvda ( he, מבצע עובדה, ''Mivtza Uvda'') was an operation conducted by the Israel Defense Forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, from March 5 to March 10, 1949. It was the last campaign undertaken by the IDF during the war and ...

, the last military maneuver of the

. On 10 March, the

Israeli Defense Forces Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...

reached the shores of the

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; T ...

at Umm Rashrash, west of

Aqaba Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Govern ...

in the area of biblical Elath, and captured it without a battle. The

Negev Brigade The 12th Negev Brigade ( he, חטיבת הנגב, ''Hativat HaNegev'') is an Israeli reserve infantry brigade under the Sinai Division, that originally served in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. History Founding and organization The brigade was fou ...

and

Golani Brigade The 1st "Golani" Brigade ( he, חֲטִיבַת גּוֹלָנִי) is an Israeli military infantry brigade that is subordinated to the 36th Division and traditionally associated with the Northern Command. It is one of the five infantry brigade ...

took part in the operation. A makeshift flag created from a white sheet inscribed with ink was raised by Captain

Avraham Adan ) , allegiance = , branch = Palmach Israel Defense Forces , serviceyears = 1943–1948 (Palmach)1948–1977 (IDF) , rank = Aluf , servicenumber = , unit = , commands = , battles = , battles_ ...

, company commander of the 8th Battalion of the Negev Brigade. The improvised flag was made on the order of Negev Brigade commander Nahum Sarig, when it was discovered that the brigade did not have an

on hand. The soldiers found a sheet, drew two ink stripes, and sewed on a

Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...

torn off a first-aid kit. In Eilat, a bronze sculpture by Israeli sculptor

Bernard Reder Bernard Reder (29 June 1897 – 7 September 1963) was an artist, sculptor, etcher, engraver and architect, born in Czernowitz, Bukovina, (Chernivtsi, Bokovina) part of Austria before World War II and a centre of Jewish and Hasidic culture. Hi ...

commemorates the event.Bernard Reder sculpture
The photo of the raising of the Ink Flag, taken by the soldier Micha Perry, bears resemblance to the 1945 American photo '' Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima''.Former IDF general, Israeli icon Avraham Adan, dies at 86

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

Gallery

File:Degel HaDyo - sculpture.jpg, Commemorative sculpture by Bernard Reder File:רשרש4.jpg, Close-up of the man on the pole

References

External links

{{Commonscat, Ink Flag
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Speech on Eilat Day - 56 Years Since the Raising of the Ink Flag, March 20th, 2005
1948 Arab–Israeli War 1949 in Israel History of Eilat Historical flags Black-and-white photographs Special events flags War photographs Flags in art 1949 in art 1949 photographs Flags of Israel Flags introduced in 1949 Inks