On 4 July 1946 a massive pogrom in Poland led to a wave of Holocaust survivors fleeing Europe for Palestine . Three weeks later ( 21 July ) , Etzel bombed the British Military Headquarters in the King David Hotel ( Jerusalem ) killing 91 people . In the days following the bombing , Tel Aviv was placed under curfew and over 120,000 Jews , nearly 20 % of the Jewish population of Palestine , were questioned by the police . In the US , Congress criticized British handling of the situation and considered delaying loans that were vital to British post-war recovery
bombed the British Military Headquarters
King David Hotel bombing
History of Israel