Ralph Bunche Denounced Assassination of UN Mediator Count Bernadotte as “Outrage” Against The International Community Diplomatic Times Staff
The assassination of Count Folke Bernadotte
deeply affected Ralph Bunche. Ralph denounced the murder as an “outrage against the international community and an unspeakable violation of elementary morality.” Also for Ralph, the assassination hit too close to home as he had previously nearly always rode in the back seat of a car with Bernadotte while they were in Israel. Ralph was also shocked at the sheer barbarity of the murder. The perpetrators of the henious crime belonged to a Zionist underground group known as LEHI, that was led by Yitzhak Shamir, Dr. Israel Scheib, and Nathan Friedman-Yellin, which waged a campaign of “personal terror” to force the British out of Palestine. Yitzhak Shamir, who played a role in planning the assasination, would never be tried and was later elected Israel’s 8th Prime Minister serving two terms, 1983–84 and 1986–1992. LEHI was also known as the “Stern Gang.” LEHI accused Count Bernadotte of being a British agent. LEHI also considered Bernadotte’s UN partion plan for Palestine to be a threat to its goal of Israeli independence on on both banks of the Jordan River. They wanted to prevent the “internationalization” of Jersusalem. Bernadotte had recommended that Jerusalem be in Arab territory under international supervision . The Jewish extremists vowed to protect Jerusalem by any means necessary. In NY Times column July 24, 1948, columnist C.L. Sulzberger reported meeting with two LEHI members who stated: “We intend to kill Bernadotte and any other uniformed United Nations observers who come to Jerusalem.” When Sulzberger asked why, “They replied that their organization was determined to seize all of Jerusalem for the State of Israel and would brook no interference by any national or international body.” None of LEHI’s leaders or the actual gunmen were ever caught although they were early known to Israel’s leaders. Israeli authorities failed to adequately investigate the murder and failed to punish the culprits. Ralph was critical of Israel’s failure to assure Bernadotte’s safety in Jerusalem. Ralph said Bernadotte’s saftery was an Israeli responsibility becacuse at the time of his assassination, he had been in the presence of and Israeli liason officer and was within the Israeli lines. Ralph then spent September 23-25 writing a full report of the incident to the UN Security Council. The report heavily indicted not only the Jewish terrorists but also called attention to what he termed as the
Count Folke Bernadotte (left) with Ralph Bunche in Israel 1948 (Credit: Wikipedia Commons Public Domain)
“The crucial work to be done here would not permit me to accompany Bernadotte’s body to Stockholm. I’m trying to keep a lid on the truce. This is a grim business I’m in.” -Ralph Bunche letter to wife Ruth September 1948-
ambivalence of Israeli authorities. Ralph also made note of the steady stream of attacks in the local Jewish press on both the mediator and the Truce Supervison Organization prior to the murder, accusing both of bias and discrimination. Ralph suggested the Jewish authorities had been very lax about the UN Mediator’s safety in his scathing report to the UN Security Council Sept. 27, 1948. In his report Ralph describes the day of 17th September, 1948, “the murder took place in Jerusalem of Count Bernadotte, the United Nations Mediator for Palestine, and of Colonel Andre Serot. The murderers, who travelled in a jeep, were wearing Jewish military uniforms. The murder took place in the Jewish held area of the city, according to a UN report: Two men dressed in Israeli Army uniforms and armed with automatic weapons of sten or tommygun type, approached left side of car in which mediator was riding. Carefully scrutinizing passengers, one of them thrust his gun through rear left window and fired several bursts directly at mediator, killing him and Colonel Serot. Two other men armed with similar guns approached mediator’s car from right and fired, apparently for purpose of covering assault and preventing pursuit. Subsequent examination of car showed ten certain and two possible bullet perforations in back seat upholstery and right side of chassis, and in addition one bullet perforation through front of chassis and another through top of radiator grill.”
“The ruthless assassination of Count Folke Bernadotte, United Nations Mediator in Palestine, and of United Nations Observer Colonel Andre Serot of the French Air Force, in Jerusalem on Friday, 17 September 1948, was the result of a deliberate and planned attack aimed at the person of the Mediator and at the authority of the United Nations in Palestine.” -27 Septemeber 1948 From Ralph Bunche To The Secretary-General Transmitting Report Regarding The Assassination of the United Nations Mediator.
Count Bernadotte street sign in Gaza City, Gaza Strip Palestine (credit: Wikipedia Commons)
DIPLOMATIC TIMES ISSUE O5 JANUARY - MARCH 2021 PAGE 10
“At the time of the fatal attack in Jerusalem, Count Bernadotte and his party had no armed protection of any kind. Official recognition of his presence in the Jewish area of Jerusalem was extended by Israel authorities in assignment of official liaison officer, who was travelling with mediator’s party, in lead car, at time of the assault. This liaison officer however was unarmed,” Ralph wrote in his scathing report to the UN Security Council.
