Israeli authorities today started a special investigation into the reasons which enabled exceedingly dangerous Arab convicts–chiefly those sentenced for espionage and murder–to escape from Shattah Prison, in the Beisan Valley, in an uprising this week-end.
The riot involved about 200 prisoners; 65 are still missing. It is believed that by now most of the missing prisoners have crossed the border into Jordan. Two wardens were killed and one injured during the uprising, while 13 jail breakers were killed in clashes with police which lasted several hours. Among the 65 missing prisoners are spies, saboteurs and fedayeen who were serving long prison sentences. The missing men art armed with at least two Bren machineguns and a number of submachine guns and rifles stolen from the prison arsenal.
As reconstructed, the events were as follows: Some of the prisoners set fire, in the prison court yard, to straw that they had been using for making mats. Under cover of the smoke, they rushed from the inner court yard through an open gate to the outer yard, where the warden’s office is located. There, led by an Arab newspaperman convicted of espionage and another Arab serving a long sentence as a leader of a gang of fedayeen, they broke into the office of the warden on duty, killed him and cut the prison’s telephone lines. Mean-while, other convicts overpowered several prison guards, locked them in a cell, and robbed the prison arsenal. Then nearly 200 prisoners broke for freedom.
A Jewish convict, serving a life sentence for the murder of his father, noticed the break from his post in the metal workshop, where he had been assigned as a supervisor. This convict ran out of the prison and down a nearby road where he hailed a taxicab which drove him to a police station not far away. There, a small police unit rushed back to the prison with the convict, but not before the police had called for re-enforcements.
The convict guided the first police arrivals to the most effective positions along the prison fence and on a tower. The convict himself was given a rifle and helped in the counter-attack against the rioting prisoners. In a short time, re-enforcements arrived and some of these units, using an armored car, managed to close the front gate. The convict-hero was praised highly for his patriotism and courageous action. Israel’s Commissioner of Prisons has recommended a pardon for the man.
JEWISH SETTLEMENTS ALERTED TO DANGER OF ESCAPED ARMED PRISONERS
When the entire area had been cordoned off, a search was begun for those who escaped. The nearby Jewish settlements of Beith Alpha, Beith-Ashita and Tel Yoseph were alerted to the dangers, and men from these settlements stood guard while others joined the police manhunt. Jewish field workers were armed and given extra guards. By the time night descended, only two of the escapees had been captured, 108 prisoners were prevented from escaping and locked up again–while 65 had disappeared. They are believed to have reached the Jordan border through the neighboring Gilboa mountains.
Settlers are bitter over the escape, since the escapees include some of the most dangerous of saboteurs and infiltrators. The concensus among all was that the prisoners must have had outside help in planning their break. Some Israelis believe that Arabs in the neighborhood may have worked with the prisoners in preparing the mass escape.
The Jerusalem Post’s political correspondent hinted, in a front-page story, that the Communists may have had something to do with the prison revolt. The writer said that the Communists have recently increased their campaign of anti-government hatred among Israeli Arabs, stating: “Israel’s Arabs are quiet now, but the Communists are known to be vigorously fomenting hatred. “
According to the Post writer, there were celebrations in Arab coffee houses on the day of the successful putsch in Iraq, last month. On that day, the newspaper declared, “mysterious patrons” paid for drinks for Arab celebrants. “Nasser’s nationalism, ” stated the newspaper, “will soon turn to other free parts of this area, such as Jordan and Israel. “
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
