The Battle of the Leaders

Shlomo Nakdimon, a former Yediot Ahronot journalist and advisor to Menachem Begin, writes about the historic rivalry between Begin and Ben-Gurion over the Altalena affair, the attempts at reconciliation between the two, and the recent announcement by Ministers Ben-Gvir and Eliyahu about locating the ship's remains. Nakdimon casts doubt on the claim that the ship was found intact, noting that he saw it sunk and its upper part set on fire.

Shlomo Nakdimon, a former Yediot Ahronot journalist and advisor to Menachem Begin, writes about the deep rivalry between Begin and Ben-Gurion over the Altalena affair. He describes how even after the ship went up in flames, Begin continued to demand an investigation into the affair, and how each side accused the other of violating state laws and of rebellion. Nakdimon recounts the attempts at reconciliation between the two, including Begin's proposal to form a national unity government under Ben-Gurion's leadership on the eve of the Six-Day War, and the warm exchange of letters between them in later years. He then addresses the recent announcement by Ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Shari Eliyahu about locating the ship's remains intact. Nakdimon casts doubt on this claim, noting that he saw the ship sunk and its upper part set on fire, so it cannot be found intact. He adds that the Irgun archives document the exact location of the part that was sunk.