A ship carrying arms for a right-wing militia, the Altalena was sunk 78 years ago off the coast of Tel Aviv at the orders of Israel’s founders. The discovery of its wreckage last week has given the country’s right-wing government ammunition to target the left and attempt to redirect the campaign for legislative elections in October.
Eight decades after driving a fledgling Israel to the brink of civil war, the Altalena has suddenly resurfaced in the run-up to elections widely regarded as the most consequential in the nation’s history.
