Dirty Deals: Why Israel Bought Nazi Tanks from France Amidst Conflict

French Scam Sells Nazi Tanks to Israel
There was no other choice for Israel

In an urgent war situation, one cannot always choose the best option. One must fight adaptively in a fast-paced situation, even if it is a second-best option. History teaches us that in the struggle to protect hard-won land, we must preserve it by any means necessary.

After World War II, the Allies approved the establishment of Israel, but there was no agreement with the Islamic communities living on the land designated for Israel. In response, the neighboring Islamic countries initiated the First Middle East War in 1948. At the start of the war, Israel did not have a single tank and asked several countries to sell tanks.

Only France Agreed to Sell Tanks
It was essentially a scam

Initially, Israel wanted the most powerful tanks in the West at the time, the American M4A3 Sherman and the British Cromwell, but both countries refused to sell. Eventually, Israel acquired France’s H35 tank, which was significantly less capable than the two tanks but at a higher price.

The problem lay in France selling Israel the H35 tank, which the Nazi German army had used during its occupation of France. Selling a Nazi-used tank to Israel, a nation with a history of suffering under Nazi atrocities, proved insufficient, and reports suggest that the H35 was not very effective in actual combat. But Israel had no choice, and with the addition of 30 Sherman scraps imported from Italy, Israel had to choose.

The King of Weapon Modification
The Basis of the Current Israeli Army

Fortunately, Israel began to assemble the fragments of numerous tanks destroyed in Europe during World War II. In this process, there were many cases where the nationality of the upper and lower parts of the tank differed. However, the Islamic countries around them were advancing towards Israel, armed with all kinds of advanced weapons. Israel entered a desperate resistance with these modified weapons and, as a result, was able to protect its territory.

Israel engaged in three more conflicts with Islamic countries in the Middle East, repeatedly collecting and modifying tanks. They even reportedly captured and modified not only Western tanks but also Soviet T-55 tanks. These weapon modification skills and know-how later became the foundation for Israel to become the strongest country in the Middle East.