https://doi.org/10.1177/0957154X20912133 History of Psychiatry 1–10 © The Author(s) 2020 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1177/0957154X20912133 journals.sagepub.com/home/hpy Patients behind the front lines: the exchange of mentally ill patients in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War Daniel Argo The Jerusalem Mental Health Center, Eitanim, affiliated with Hadassah Medical School, Israel Vladislav Fainstein The Jerusalem Mental Health Center, Eitanim, affiliated with Hadassah Medical School, Israel Edgar Jones King’s College London, UK Moshe Z Abramowitz Peres Academic Center, Rehovot, Israel and Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Israel Abstract The British Mandate in Palestine ended abruptly in 1948. The British departure engendered a complex situation which affected all areas of life, and the country’s health system was no exception. Gradual transition of the infrastructure was almost impossible owing to the ineffectiveness of the committee appointed by the United Nations. The situation was further complicated by the outbreak of the Arab–Israeli War. We relate for the first time the story of 75 Jewish patients who were left in a former British mental hospital in Bethlehem – deep behind the front lines. Despite the hostilities, there were complex negotiations about relocating those patients. This episode sheds light on the Jewish and Arab relationship as it pertained to mental institutions during and immediately after the British Mandate. Keywords Arab–Israeli 1948 War, British Mandate, colonial psychiatry, mental health Corresponding author: Daniel Argo, Jerusalem Mental Health Center, Eitanim Psychiatric Hospital, D.N. Tzefon Yehuda 90972, Israel. Email: Daniel.argo@moh.gov.il 912133HPY 0 0 10.1177/0957154X20912133History of PsychiatryArgo et al. research-article 2020 Article