Israeli Stamp of Indian Cavalry from Haifa War Doesn’t Show Sikhs
While the stamp was released by Israel Post in honour of the Indian battalion, it does not feature the Sikh regiment
advertisement
CLAIM
The photo of an Israeli postage stamp showing the Indian Battalion of the British army from 1918 is doing the rounds on social media as a stamp that was released by the country to honour the “Sikh battalion which saved Haifa 100 years back.”
The photo has been shared by actor Kabir Bedi and has received over 2.8k retweets at the time of writing this article.
TRUE OR FALSE?
While the stamp was indeed released by Israel Post in honour of the Indian battalion, it does not feature the Sikh regiment, as claimed.
A reverse image search of the stamp leads to a tweet by Daniel Carmon, who was the former Ambassador to India and Sri Lanka.
According to his tweet from 5 March 2018, the stamp was issued by the Israeli Philatelic Service to commemorate the Indian cavalry soldiers who fought and participated in the liberation war of Haifa on 23 September 1918. The stamp was issued as part of the “WW1 in Eretz Israel Centenary.”
According to the description on Israel Post’s website, the stamp features the insignia of the Indian Army’s Ramchi Jodhpur Battalion, which, according to an article in The Indian Express, comprised of the Rathores of Marwar-Jodhpur.
This was also pointed out by several people in response to Bedi’s tweet.
WHAT HAPPENED AT THE HAIFA LIBERATION WAR
The Haifa Liberation War, fought over the course of the World War I, saw a sizeable contribution from the British Army’s 15th (Imperial Service) Cavalry Brigade, comprising the Jodhpur Lancers, Mysore Lancers and the Hyderabad Lancers.
According to an article in The Times of India, the Jodhpur and Mysore lancers led the attack in the battle to free Haifa fro the 450-year-long Turkish rule, while the Mysore lancers were kept in reserve.
Within an hour, the cavalry regiment, particularly the Jodhpur Lancers, invaded and liberated Haifa from the Ottoman empire. The battle saw the Commanding Officer of the Jodhpur Lancers, Major Dalpat Singh die and be bestowed with the title ‘Haifa Hero.’
Meanwhile, Singh was replaced by another officer Aman Singh, and under his lead, the lancers fought to free Haifa. In 2010, relatives of Aman Singh, with the help of the Israel government, built a memorial in Haifa in memory of the war, and ever since 23 September is commemorated as “Vijay Diwas” there.
(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9910181818, or e-mail it to us at webqoof@thequint.com and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)