 Indeed , as auxiliary forces of the British in Mandatory Palestine , several elements of the Arab Legion served in Palestine during the Mandate . The British had promised that these units would be withdrawn before the end of April , but for " technical reasons " , several companies didn 't leave the country . John Bagot Glubb , the commander of the Arab Legion , formed them into one division with two brigades , each made up of two infantry battalions , in addition to several independent infantry companies . Each battalion was given an armored @-@ car company , and the artillery was made into a separate battalion with three batteries . Another " dummy " brigade was formed to make the Israelis believe it was a reserve brigade , thus deterring them from counterattacking into Transjordan . 
