Sunken Altalena found, ending 78-year mystery
Israel has found the wreck of the Altalena, 78 years after the infamous arms ship was sunk off the country’s Mediterranean coast.
Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu announced Monday that the vessel was discovered intact at a depth of 1,650 feet.
The newly created Israel Defense Forces shelled the Irgun ship off Tel Aviv in June 1948 amid a bitter showdown over weapons carried aboard. Sixteen Irgun members and three IDF soldiers were killed.
Future Prime Minister Menachem Begin, then Irgun leader, ordered his men not to return fire in an effort to avert civil war.
About a year later, the wreck was towed 15 miles offshore and scuttled.
Israel’s Heritage Ministry spent about $296,000 on the hunt, deploying the national research vessel Bat Galim and advanced detection technology.
“A country that is not afraid to confront the painful chapters of its history is a stronger country,” Eliyahu said.
