A Perspective on India–Israel Defence and Security Ties

India’s defence and security ties with West Asia has not been a recent phenomena but dates back to more than a century. Indian cavalry soldiers scripted a brave saga of courage and sacrifice in what perhaps may be described as the last cavalry charge in history. This unique cavalry action on September 23, 1918 comprising the Jodhpur, Mysore and Hyderabad Lancers (as part of the 15th Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade) was tasked with capturing the port city of Haifa in present day Israel. The Brigade was part of the Fifth Cavalry Division of the Desert Mounted Corps with the overall objective of folding up the Turkish Seventh and Eighth Armies (Ottoman Empire).