{"id":52985,"date":"2019-08-25T15:57:04","date_gmt":"2019-08-25T12:57:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.nli.org.il\/?p=52985"},"modified":"2025-12-09T13:31:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T11:31:15","slug":"hoi-marine-carp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/hoi-marine-carp\/","title":{"rendered":"Captives in Lebanon: The Story of the “Marine Carp”"},"content":{"rendered":"

In May 1948, a new regional order took hold in the Middle East. In a single moment, metaphorical walls were erected and routes were cut off. Jerusalem was still under siege and the road to the Negev desert was blocked. International routes that were once used freely by the inhabitants of Mandatory Palestine were now shut down as a result of the war that had broken out. Damascus and Cairo were no longer accessible. In the midst of this new order, just one day after the establishment of the State of Israel, a maritime drama began which would last for a month and a half. This is the story of the American ship, Marine Carp<\/em>.<\/p>\n

This article was written in collaboration with the Toldot Yisrael Collection<\/a>, dedicated to documenting the testimonies of the State of Israel’s founding generation. This collection is now deposited in the National Library.<\/p>\n

The USNS Marine Carp<\/em> was originally built for the purpose of transporting military forces to Europe and back. Following the conclusion of World War II, the vessel was repurposed as a\u00a0 passenger ship and set on a regular, commercial route. She embarked out of New York, crossed the Atlantic, and docked in Athens, Beirut, Haifa, and Alexandria. At the end of the route, she returned to New York via Italy. During the post-war period, the Marine Carp<\/em> transported many American Jews to the Land of Israel in order to volunteer on kibbutzim<\/em>, attend youth gatherings, or simply immigrate to the Land of Israel legally (if they were able to make it past the various obstacles successfully). The ship set out from New York every five weeks. On May 4th, 1948, Marine Carp<\/em> embarked on its regular route. There were many Jewish travelers aboard, including Jews from the Land of Israel studying or living in the United States who were answering a general enlistment call put out by the Hebrew Yishuv<\/em> which was already fighting for its life in the War of Independence.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A picture of some of the Marine Carp<\/em> passengers before embarking on their fateful voyage. From The Jewish Daily Forward<\/em> Yiddish newspaper. May 22nd, 1948<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the passengers on the Marine Carp<\/em> was David Sidorsky<\/a>, who would later become a professor of philosophy at Columbia University. While a young student in New York, he was in attendance at the UN building during the vote on the partition plan. Following its acceptance, and the ensuing threats of war by the Arab states, the idea of volunteering for combat was planted deeply in his mind. After a brief meeting with Teddy Kollek, then a representative of the Haganah, <\/em>he received permission to join the division of overseas volunteers and boarded the ship.<\/p>\n

But the plans of the volunteers would be halted in their tracks.<\/p>\n

David Sidorsky testifies:<\/strong><\/p>\n