Free The Prime Ministers: An Intimate Narrative of Israeli Leadership by Yehuda Avner Page A

Romema saw what a thorough job the Hagana has made of the place, not in its destruction but in clearing out the Arabs who had lived there. I did not see an Arab around. All the shops were closed. Many have been let to Jews. Whilst in town I saw a Tel Aviv convoy arrive. The convoy consisted of two armored buses and a few armored trucks. Following in the rear were the Jewish settlement police in open vans (poor fellows!)
Friday January 9: This morning, against advice, I went to shul. I did this because I realize the futility of a Kaddish said here [at the Machon ] where everybody talks and eats and do not respect the prayer of putting on a hat. They know no better. I have been hearing more reports recently about the British activities. Ray, a reporter of the United Press, told me how the Irgun saved their compatriot who was wounded at Jaffa Gate on January 7. He was guarded over by a British policeman and outside Jaffa Gate was an armored car. The Irgun defied all and in the guise of doctors four of them came and carried the wounded fellow out to safety right under the noses of the British policeman and the armored car. I must give the Irgun credit.
No attempt is being made to feed the 1,500 Jews left in the Old City by the British, and they refuse to allow any help to be given by other Jews.
As I sum up everything in my own mind I see so clearly the mess the British are making here. Through them 1) The capital of the country is virtually cut off. 2) There is no access to the main hospital [Hadassa]. 3) There is no road to the [Hebrew] University. 4) Over 100 bodies are lying in Jerusalem hospitals because they cannot get to the cemetery on Har Hazeitim – Mount of Olives. 5) The courts are not functioning properly. 6) British show a definite bias in favor of the Arabs. The quicker they leave the better.
Shabbat January 10: Nothing spectacular to report.
Sunday January 11 : Trench digging.
[…]
    Wednesday February 4: After tea I went to shul for mincha [the afternoon service] to recite Kaddish since I could not get a minyan at the Machon. I was just about to board the bus when I heard a girl’s voice calling my name. I turned and saw Esther Cailingold standing by the kiosk. It has been quite a few months since I last saw her. In the evening I met her at the corner of Ben Yehuda Street and we went to the Atara café and talked.
Sunday February 22: I delayed putting down this entry because my mood was too numbed. At 6:30 a.m. I was awoken by the sound of a terrific explosion. I got dressed and went to daven at Zichron Moshe. I noticed a few windows broken in shul but did not ask questions until I got back to Machaneh Yehuda. I asked the old fellow with the pot and pan shop near the bus stop what had happened and he told me about Ben Yehuda Street. I rushed down Jaffa Road and the nearer I got to the scene the more pronounced was the damage. Finally, I arrived at King George Avenue and saw what looked like the blast of a blitz. Up I walked to Ben Yehuda Street. My God! What a sight! Sheer and utter destruction. 55 killed and over 100 wounded. As I walked past the Bikur Cholim Hospital I saw and heard the screams and moans of the families of the victims. I could concentrate on nothing for the rest of the day. I knew the British had done it. [Actually, it was the work of British deserters in the pay of the Arabs.] Feelings are running high. The Irgun has put up posters that they will shoot every Britisher in Jerusalem. I listened to the Hagana underground broadcast in English. It was the voice of Esther Cailingold.

    The author helps prepare a vegetable garden during the siege of Jerusalem, March 1948

    Esther Cailingold, 22 years of age, February 1948

Chapter 3
Esther
    A few weeks later, through half-closed eyes, I peeped at the clock on my bedside table. It was eleven in the morning, and I winced at the sound of the phone jerking me out of a deep slumber after a sodden night of guard duty and a chilly dawn of trench