Gaza City

[Guest mruk]

Evening All, new to the cemetery website, although I've spent a couple of nights on 'Other'. I'm hoping somebody may have the answer to a couple of questions. Here goes.

Given the current situation in Israel, and the escalation in violence on both sides, does anyone know the state or condition of the cemeteries in Gaza? My [Paternal] Grandmother's brother was killed in the Second Battle of Gaza in 1917

Pte George Smith, 201630, 1/5th King's Own Scottish Borderers, 19th April 1917, Gaza War Cemetery, aged 24 years.

George was from Leeds, and according to my sister [newspaper cutting], he had already served nine years before his death. I'm assuming George served with the Territorials

My second question is about reclamation, and from what I understand it is the practice of the Israeli's to always recover their dead. What implication does this have for the many Jewish lads who died in the Middle East? Or does perpetuity mean perpetuity regardless of race or faith?

Many Thanks in Expectation

Kind Regards

Dave [Mruk]

[PPCLI]

Pte George Smith, 201630, 1/5th King's Own Scottish Borderers, 19th April 1917, Gaza War Cemetery, aged 24 years.

George was from Leeds, and according to my sister [newspaper cutting], he had already served nine years before his death. I'm assuming George served with the Territorials

Hi Dave,

Not replying about Gaza, rather on your great uncle's KOSB service.

I have the BWM/Vic medal roll page that contains the entry for your great uncle. He is mixed in with a group of men who all enlisted with the KOSB, but were formerly with different battalions prior to being transferred to the 1/5th Bn.

In your great uncle's case his first regt. no. is 10644, which I notice is not given on his MIC. The medal roll states that originally he was Pte. George Smith, 10644, 1st KOSB. He then transferred to the 1/4th KOSB as no. 9269, which in 1917 was changed to 201630. The medal roll gives no indication that he was transferred to the 1/5th KOSB, but this may either be a typo or his subsequent transfer was not properly recorded.

Of course, his original battalion indicates that he was a pre-war regular rather than a territorial. The regt. no. suggests that he enlisted about mid- to late-1909. It may be possible to narrow down his date of enlistment, but this can take a bit of time searching MICs and SWB rolls. This slightly later date perhaps fits better with his age, i.e. 16/17 years old in 1909.

If you PM me your email address I will send you a copy of the medal roll.

Cheers,

Stuart