Mahal, more often spelled Machal (), refers to the group of overseas volunteers who fought alongside Israeli forces during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Some 4,000 volunteers, mostly Jews but also non-Jews, arrived from all over the world. Mahal is an acronym of (Mitnadvei Hutz LaAretz, "volunteers from abroad"). Mahal was disbanded after the war and most of the volunteers went home, although some remained in the country as permanent residents. History Many members of Mahal were World War II veterans from United States and British Armed Forces. Allied armies were reduced considerably after the end of the war and many soldiers were demobilised; moreover, the service experience became mundane and did not suit some servicemen, particularly pilots. In various circumstances they were invited, or heard of the Jewish state's struggle for independence and volunteered. In some cases those who enlisted had no prior military experience. There were Jews and Christians, both ideological supporters of Zionism and mercenaries. The Ha'apala movement, also called "Aliyah Bet", which attempted to evade the 1939 and 1948 British naval blockade restricting Jewish immigration to Palestine, was assisted by 236 Machal former servicemen of the Allied navies as crews of ten clandestine Jewish refugee ships, out of sixty-six participating vessels. The 1948 Arab-Israeli War saw approximately 3500 foreign volunteers from 58 countries among the Jewish forces, out of an estimated 29,677–108,300 total (it grew considerably in size due to increasing levels of militarisation). A total of 123 Mahalniks were killed in battle (119 men and 4 women). One of the most famous Machal volunteers was Mickey Marcus, a Jewish United States Army colonel who became Israel's first aluf (brigadier general). Marcus' wartime experience was vital in the 1948 Battle for Jerusalem. Other important Mahalniks were Canadian officer Ben Dunkelman and U.S. pilot Milton Rubenfeld, and Major Wellesley Aron, an English-born Palestinian Jew who had commanded a unit in the British Army during World War II. In 1947, while on a lecture tour of the United States, he was requested by the Haganah to organize the recruitment of men with "know-how" who could help in defending the newly established state. Aid to Israeli Air Force The largest presence of Mahal was felt in the Israeli Air Force (IAF), making up nearly two-thirds of its personnel, to the point that English overtook Hebrew as the most widely used operational IAF service language. Cargo flights flown by Mahal air