Mike Flanagan ( Hebrew מייק פלאנגן , Michael Peleg ), ( May 15, 1926 , Foxford , Mayo County, Ireland - January 26, 2014 , Toronto , USA ) is an Irish soldier who assisted in the formation of the Israeli armed forces. He served in the British Army during World War II and participated in the liberation of the Nazi camp Bergen-Belsen .
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After the war, Flanagan was sent to the territory of the British Mandate in Palestine . Sympathizing with the newly emerging Jewish state, Flanagan (along with his tank commander, Harry MacDonald) stole two British Cromwell tanks and handed them over to Israeli troops in Tel Aviv on June 29, 1948. They became the main ones in the Israeli armored corps.
Flanagan is considered one of the most famous deserters of the British army in Palestine.
Subsequently, Flanagan adopted Judaism , took the Hebrew name Michael Peleg (English Michail Peleg, in Hebrew מיכאל פלג) and married Ruth Levy, whom he met in the service. They lived in Israel in the kibbutz Shaar ha Amakim . After leaving Hagana and the death of his wife, he emigrated to Canada .
The Wiesenthal Center in the United States posthumously awarded him the Medal of Valor.