Abu-Shah, Muhammad Isma’il

Muhammad Isma’il, son of Bazan and Isma’il Abu-Shah, was born in 1930, in Beit Jann, in the Galilee. Mohammed volunteered for the Israel Defense Forces and served in the special Druze unit. During Operation “Hiram” for the liberation of the Western Galilee, the unit fought under the command of the Oded Brigade, which operated in the western sector of the operation. On the night of October 28/29, our forces attacked Tarshiha and the Druze unit was assigned to conquer the village of Yanuh. The attack on Tarshiha did not succeed, and the forces were ordered to retreat. The Druze unit took control of Yanu, but due to faults in the connection, it did not accept the withdrawal order. In the morning Kaukji’s forces recovered and with the help of some villagers attacked the unit and was forced to retreat. He fell in battle on October 29, 1948, and the next day he was buried on the battlefield. On November 30, 1954, he was transferred to the Druze military cemetery in the village of Isfiya. In his letter of 18 May 1950 to the Government of Israel, the bereaved father, Ismail Hassan Abu-Shah, wrote: “We, the entire family, wish success and victory for the young state.”