Burma Road

Our daughter and her husband took off for a ski week in Italy and we became a full time baby sitters for a week to our 3 grand kids.
From time to time it is a great pleasure to see them 24/7 and learn many things about them that usually can not be seen when we meet them periodically
I am sure that part of you can understand and relate to this connection between us the grand parents and the grand kids especially when they are not infants and can teach us a thing or two.
Our eldest Grand Daughter Yuval is 12 years old and has to present a project on the Jerusalem Siege during the independence war in 1948.

On top of telling her the story and the involvement of our parents in this battle we decided to take a day trip to the area including the Burma Road that was built and used to break the siege on Jerusalem.


Background
Building Burma Road

During the early phase of the Israeli war of independence (from November 29, 1947 to May 15, 1948), local Arab forces took control of the hills overlooking the road to Jerusalem (today Highway 1), between Sha'ar HaGai (Bab el-Wad) and Al Qastal. Vehicles attempting to use the road, Jerusalem's only link to the coast, took heavy fire, in effect besieging the city's Jewish population. Convoys carrying food, weapons, and medical supplies sent by the Yishuv sustained heavy losses, and often didn't get through to the city.

On May 15, 1948, British forces withdrew from the Latrun monastery and police fort that dominated the road and prevented supplies from reaching Jerusalem. Latrun was immediately occupied by the Palmach's Harel Brigade. However, on the night of May 18, British officered Arab Legion forces from Transjordan seized Latrun, and subsequent Jewish attempts to gain a foothold in the region failed.

The growing need for supplies amongst Jerusalem's Jewish population weakened the Jewish foothold within the city considerably. A small amount of supplies, mostly munitions, were ferried by air, but the shortage of food, water, fuel and medicines was acute. The Jewish leadership, under David Ben Gurion feared that the city would surrender to the Arab Legion, and a search for a way to bypass the Arab blockade commenced.

It was a great and beautiful day,we are blessed to have such a family, here are some picture that can show what we went through much better than I can put in words.