Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
A deep, dark, secret love affair - A team of IDF officers, known as the `Mexicans,' helped Singapore establish an army
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
Christmas Eve, 1965, is the unofficial date of the start of the great
and continuing love story between Israel and Singapore, a love affair
that was kept a deep, dark secret. The international press, like the
Israeli media, tried to bring the tale to light. Occasionally, scraps of
information leaked out; some were published, some were denied, many
were disregarded. The Israelis, as usual, wanted to rush to tell all
their friends, but managed to overcome that desire. The fear that the
thies would be terminated if they became public knowledge had its
effect. Israel imposed a total blackout on the story and the secret was
preserved. Until the other side could no longer contain itself.
In his book, "From Third World to First: The Singapore Story
1965-2000," published in 2000, Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's founding
father and its first prime minister, disclosed the secret that had been
kept for almost 40 years: It was the Israel Defense Forces that
established the Singaporean army. The Israeli military mission was
headed by Yaakov (Jack) Elazari, then a colonel, who was later promoted
to brigadier general. After leaving the army, he became a consultant to
the Singaporean army. Hedied 15 years ago. "To disguise their
presence, we called them `Mexicans.' They looked swarthy enough," Lee
wrote.
Singapore's
army is today considered the strongest and most advanced of the
military forces in Southeast Asia. The alliance between the Israeli and
Singaporean defense establishments intensified and expanded, and it now
encompasses cooperation between the two countries' military industries,
as well. The scope of the deals, according to foreign sources, indicates
that the Singaporean army is one of the major clients of Israeli combat
means and military technology. Singapore's aircraft industry is
cooperating with its Israeli counterpart and with Elbit Systems in
upgrading the F-5 warplanes of the Turkish Air Force. A few years ago,
Singapore's defense minister revealed that the Gil antitank missile,
which is manufactured by Raphael (Israel Armaments Development
Authority), was developed in cooperation between the two countries.
Surrounded by Muslims
Lee explained the need to maintain secrecy to his close friend in the
leadership, and the first defense minister in his government, Dr. Goh
Keng Swee. "We have to ensure, as far as possible, that the arrival of
the Israelis will not become public knowledge, in order not to arouse
opposition among the Malay Muslims who live in Malaysia and Singapore,"
the prime minister summed up. That, in essence, is Singapore's problem.
The residents of the small island, which has an area of about 670 square
kilometers (Israel is 30 times as large), are mainly Chinese, and they
live between the two Muslim countries of Malaysia and Indonesia. Life in
the shadow of the large Muslim majority and fear of a Malaysian
incursion are an integral part of the history of the two countries.
Until 1965, Singapore was part of Malaysia. In that year, the British
government decided to withdraw from all its colonies east of the Suez
Canal. In a rapid process it was decided to sever Singapore from
Malaysia and to establish it as a new and separate country.
Singapore
declared its independence on August 9, 1965. At the time of its
creation, it had only two infantry regiments, which had been established
and were commanded by British officers. Two-thirds of the soldiers were
not residents of Singapore, and in any event the leaders of the nascent
state had no faith in the strength of the minuscule army. The defense
minister, Goh, contacted Mordechai Kidron, the former Israeli ambassador
to Thailand, and asked for assistance. Kidron arrived in Singapore
within days, along with Hezi Carmel of the Mossad. "Goh told us that
they think that only Israel, a small country surrounded by Muslim
countries, with a strong army, could help them build a small, dynamic
army," Carmel says. The two Israelis met with Lee, who writes that he
"told Keng Swee to put it on hold until Lal Bahadur Shastri, the prime
minister of India, and President Nasser of Egypt replied to my letters
seeking their urgent help to build up our armed forces."
It's
not clear whether Lee, in fact, believed India and Egypt were capable
of, or interested in, building up Singapore's army. Many Israelis
believe the two leaders were approached only for appearance's sake.
After a few weeks of waiting, India and Egypt congratulated Singapore on
its independence but did not offer military aid. Lee ordered Goh to
push ahead in contacts with the Israelis.
At
the same time, in the wake of reports sent by Kidron and Carmel, the
Israeli defense establishment deployed to supply military aid to
Singapore. In discussions conducted by the chief of staff, Yitzhak
Rabin, with the participation of the deputy chief of staff and head of
the Operations Branch, Ezer Weizmann, it was decided to make Major
General Rehavam Ze'evi, who was then deputy head of the Operations
Branch, responsible for building the Singaporean army. Ze'evi (nicknamed
"Gandhi" ) paid a secret visit to Singapore and the preparatory work
began on his return. "Gandhi said he wanted to create an ideal army for
Singapore, something we hadn't built here," Carmel says. "Instead of
setting up a Defense Ministry and a General Staff, Gandhi suggested an
integrated organization, a more economical structure. So there wouldn't
be too many generals and too few soldiers."
Ze'evi
appointed Elazari, who worked under him in the Operations Branch, as
head of the team he established. Lieutenant Colonel Yehuda Golan,
then-commander of an armored division (he retired from the IDF with the
rank of brigadier general), was subsequently added to the team. Some
members of the team "concentrated on writing the chapters that dealt
with building army bases. I wrote the chapters dealing with the
establishment of an infantry," Golan says. Initially they produced the
"Brown Book," dealing with combat doctrine, followed by the "Blue Book,"
dealing with the creation of the Defense Ministry and intelligence
bodies. The Brown Book was translated into English and sent to
Singapore's government for its perusal. In October 1965, a military
delegation from Singapore arrived in Israel.
"The
delegation arrived in order to tell us: `Well done, but to implement
the book, you are invited to come to Singapore,'" Golan recalls. Prior
to setting out, the members of the military mission were invited to the
chief of staff's bureau. "Dear friends," Rabin said, "I want you to
remember several things. One, we are not going to turn Singapore into
an Israeli colony. Your task is to teach them the military profession,
to put them on their legs so they can run their own army. Your success
will be if at a certain stage they will be able to take the wheel and
run the army by themselves. Second, you are not going there in order to
command them but to advise them. And third, you are not arms merchants.
When you recommend items to procure, use the purest professional
military judgment. I want total disregard of their decision as to
whether to buy here or elsewhere."
Wake-up at 5:30
On December 24, 1965, about five months after Singapore became an
independent state, six IDF officers and their families set out on an
unknown mission. "Elazari and two other officers dealt with the
establishment of the Defense Ministry," Golan relates. "My task, along
with three other officers, was to establish the army."Elazari
operated according to a number of basic principles, from which the
original Israeli team and those who followed did not deviate. The first
was to build up a cadre of local commanders and instructors. The second
was that the instructional material would be written by the cadets who
would be trained as officers. And the third was that practical training
would be conducted by Singaporean instructors.
"We
wanted to recruit a group of 40-50 people who had some sort of military
experience and would be ready to serve in a career army," Golan
explains. "We organized things so that they would appoint one of their
number to serve as commander. As head of the group, the cadets chose
someone of Indian origin named Kirpa Ram Vij, who would eventually
become chief of staff of the Singapore Armed Forces. For three months we
gave an intensified officers course."
The
first course had an IDF format: wake-up at 5:30 A.M., calisthenics,
personal arrangements, parade. Training began at 7:30 A.M. and went
until 1 A.M. "After a few days of training a group of cadets showed up
and said, `Colonel Golan, the Arabs aren't sitting on our heads here.
What do we need this madness for?' I called Elazari and explained the
situation. He arrived a few days later with Defense Minister Dr. Goh,
who told the cadets, `Do what Colonel Golan tells you to do, otherwise
you will do double.'"
Parallel
to conducting the course, the Israeli team supervised the establishment
of the first military base, based on plans of the Israeli Engineering
Corps. Construction of the base was completed in three months.In
under a year, the Israeli team conducted a course for new recruits, a
platoon commanders course and an officers course, on the basis of plans
that were sent from Israel. All told, about 200 commanders were trained.
Jobless instead of soldiers
Once the staff of commanders was ready, it was possible to start
creating the standing army on the basis of conscription. The Israelis
prepared to establish two more infantry regiments, according to the IDF
model, with each regiment consisting of three companies of riflemen, an
auxiliary company and an administrative company - a total of 600
soldiers. Lieutenant Colonel Moshe Shefi, who was an instructor in a
company commanders course, was sent as an adviser. "We discovered that
there was psychological resistance to conscription in Singapore," he
relates. "Of 10 professions, that of soldier was ranked last. In first
place was the artist, followed by the philosopher, the teacher and the
merchant, and the thief was in ninth place. Soldiering was considered a
contemptible profession. In Singapore, conscription was considered a
means to overcome unemployment."
The
Israelis faced a problem. To evade service, most of the young men of
draft age (18-24) who were of Chinese origin furnished proof that they
were employed. Some 70 percent of the inductees were unemployed and of
Malaysian origin - the opposite of their proportion within the
population. Elazari and Golan complained to Lee and Goh, but the prime
minister was undeterred. "I want you to recruit the most primitive
people in the country, the uneducated and the jobless," he told them.
Stunned, the Israelis tried to persuade him to reconsider, but he was
adamant: "In the Second World War, I saw the Japanese and the British.
All the British soldiers were intelligent and educated. But as soldiers
they were worthless. The most primitive Japanese soldier gets an order
and executes it, and they were extraordinary soldiers. The fact is that
the Japanese army defeated the British army."
Golan
says, "Yaakov and I tried to explain to him that it's not a question of
education but of motivation. The Japanese soldier was motivated because
he was fighting for his emperor, who for him was God. For him, he was
ready to sacrifice his life. What motivation did the British soldier
have, who fought thousands of kilometers from his home?" The
explanations about the spirit of combat and about how to generate
motivation persuaded Lee.
Along
with the two tracks of compulsory service and career army, Singapore
also adopted the IDF's model of reserve service. Every soldier who
completed his regular service was obligated to serve another 13 years,
until the age of 33. A system to mobilize the reserves was established
and the Defense Ministry carried out surprise call-up exercises.
Because of its small size and its lack of areas for live-fire training,
Singapore had to establish training bases in friendly neighboring
countries.
Surprise tanks
The unquiet in Singapore, and above all the fear of an invasion by
Malay forces, together with the rapid development of the Singaporean
army, generated additional needs. With the creation of the infantry, the
Israeli team made an in-depth study of the battles fought by the
Japanese in Southeast Asia during World War II and of how they succeeded
in invading Malaysia and Singapore. Shefi was given the task of
delivering a talk on the subject to Singapore's government.
On
the basis of the lessons the Israelis drew from the engagements fought
by Japan and Britain, they created a naval force based on sampans. "The
boats were made of wood and could carry 10 to 15 soldiers, and they were
appropriate for the conditions of the sea and for the jungle rivers,"
Golan says. "On a stormy sea they can be operated with oars or a motor.
We asked the Singaporeans to purchase 20 boats and we set up a small
base where infantry companies trained in raids and navigation."
Retired
Colonel Asher Dar says, "The second team that arrived in Singapore
applied what Yehuda Golan did in the form of combat doctrine. We trained
in flanking maneuvers with small boats and in live fire using
artillery. When the head of the training department, Yitzhak Hofi,
visited Singapore, we carried out a model landing of an infantry brigade
that set sail in boats at night at a distance of 12 kilometers with the
aid of shore navigation only."
The
waiting period in Israel on the eve of the 1967 Six-Day War was a rough
time for the Israeli team in Singapore. "We were relieved the Israelis
were not defeated or our SAF [Singapore Armed Forces] would have lost
confidence" in the Israeli instructors, Lee writes. In January 1968,
Singapore decided to create an armored corps. In great secrecy, an
agreement was signed for the purchase of 72 AMX-13 light tanks from IDF
surplus. It was a bold decision: Malaysia, the country's large neighbor,
didn't have tanks. On
Independence Day, August 9, 1969, a major surprise awaited the invited
guests, including the defense minister of Malaysia: 30 tanks rolled past
the reviewing stand. "It had a dramatic effect," Lee writes. Malaysia
had cause for concern. Its defense minister recommended to his guests
that they take steps to persuade the Malaysian government that its
intentions were not hostile.
In
the wake of the Israeli victory in 1967, the veil of secrecy over the
ties between the two countries was lifted a bit. The Singapore delegate
at the United Nations abstained in a vote on a resolution condemning
Israel that was sponsored by the Arab states. Contacts began to
establish full diplomatic relations. In October 1968, Lee permitted
Israel to establish a trade mission and in May 1969 authorization was
given for the establishment of an Israeli embassy in Singapore. The
status of the Israeli military mission to Singapore was also
strengthened, and the mission heads who followed held brigadier general
rank. The first Israeli military delegation laid the foundations for an
extensive network of relations between Israel and Singapore.
Foundations of the air force
The small Israeli team in Singapore was augmented by professional
military advisers for the various corps. The chief armored corps
officer, Major General Avraham Adan, arrived to give advice on procuring
armored vehicles. In 1968, Adam Tzivoni, a retired colonel who had been
head of the planning and weapons branch in the air force, was appointed
adviser to the Singapore Armed Forces in regard to the creation of an
air force.
"As
compensation for the hasty departure of the British army, the British
government gave Singapore a grant of 50 million pounds to acquire
British-made aerial systems: planes, helicopters and surface-to-air
missiles," Tzivoni relates. "The British didn't like me at all. My first
task was to approve the deals. It turned out that the English tried to
sell Singapore junk. Apart from a deal for Hunters, I vetoed all the
deals." Under
Tzivoni's supervision, a flight school was established in Singapore, as
well as a technical school, a squadron of Alouette 3 helicopters was
purchased and 40 mm anti-aircraft guns were acquired.
Uzis and Israeli marching songs
After the creation of the Singaporean army's infantry regiments, the
question arose of what weapons the nascent armed forces would use. The
commanding officers wanted the Uzi, the Israeli submachine gun. The
Israeli team took an objective view and rejected the idea. True, the Uzi
was considered a superb weapon in the 1960s, but only for short ranges.
A regular army needs an assault rifle, the Israeli team asserted.
Representatives of Israel Military Industries exerted pressure on the
Defense Ministry to sell the new Galil assault rifle. However, the team
decided that the rifle wasn't yet full ready and recommended the
American M-16.
Another
major headache for the Israelis concerned the decision about which
mortars to procure for the new army. Infantry regiments are equipped
with 60 - 52 mm and 18 mm mortars. The weapons, which were developed
and manufactured by the Soltam company, based in the town of Yokne'am,
were sold to the Israel Defense Forces and exported worldwide. "Even
though we thought these were the best mortars, we decided not to
recommend them but to make use of an independent source in order to
reach a decision," says Yehuda Golan, a member of the team sent to
Singapore.
The
Israeli team asked a British firm that dealt in organization and
consultation on military subjects to examine a series of mortars and
recommend the best one. The report stated that the best of the lot was
an 18 mm mortar manufactured in Britain. However, considering the price,
the recommendation was to buy the Soltam product. The Singapore Armed
Forces acquired the Israeli mortar.
"The
Israelis emphasized military skills and high motivation. Smartness on
parade and military tattoo, the SAF [Singapore Armed Forces] never
learned from the `Mexicans.' Whatever smartness the SAF had" derived
from the British officers who commanded the army's first two regiments,
Lee writes. "Our
motto was that we would not stick our nose into what the Singaporeans
could do themselves," Golan notes. "They wanted us to organize the
Independence Day parade for them. We argued that a state military parade
reflects the country's mentality and its history." The Singaporeans
didn't make an issue of it. However, they had a problem that demanded an
immediate solution - which marches to play as the soldiers marched in
unison. The head of the Israeli mission, Yaakov Elazari, brought notes
from Israel and the Singapore army strode to Israeli marching songs.
The jungle combat manual
The Singaporeans took the Israelis by surprise when they insisted on
getting a course on jungle combat. Singapore has a tiny natural jungle
of no more than five or six square kilometers, but the neighboring
states have larger jungles. Yehuda Golan: "I told them they were right
but that I wasn't the right guy, because I knew nothing about jungles."
Nevertheless, the Israeli team began to find out how to cope with the
subject. It was decided to send two Singapore officers as guests of the
Malaysian army for a course on jungle combat.
"Three
months later, the two officers returned with the knowledge they
acquired in Malaysia, and we decided to conduct a course in jungle
combat," Golan continues. "Out of curiosity, I decided to join. It
looked very bad - it was clear that they had taught them British methods
from the Second World War period. I decided to take a group of 10
officers. We entered the jungle and started to engage in war games. We
trained in navigation, deploying forces, search and assault. We went
through the American training manuals on combat in Vietnam. We developed
methods of night navigation. We learned how to function with a fighting
company in the dense undergrowth. After a few weeks of training, I
wrote the training manual of the Singapore Armed Forces for jungle
combat." Haaretz
