This post is dedicated to those 6 men who served with the Polish Army and who found their' final resting place in the CWGC WW2 War Cemetery, Beirut, Lebanon. note: 7 images attached. ALEKSANDER ZALESKY Service Number: 27/1/19/2/III 05 - 04 -1945 B ZARCZYNSKA 08 - 01-1945 E KOBIELA Service Number: 156 23 - 04 - 1940 GRZEGORZ KOCHAN Service Number: 431/III 11 - 10 - 1944 B W LICHOTA Service Number: 85/111 27 - 11 - 1943 K L KOPERKIEWICZ 02 - 07 - 1944 LEST WE FORGET A. Buckley asiawargraves.com
Buckit, A small mystery whilst out of the sun to tackle. Presumably some, if not all come from the Polish Carpathian Brigade, which was in French Syria and who were ordered to defect to the British in Palestine in June 1940. KOBIELA died when they were in Syria. See: Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade - Wikipedia I see the headstones just have 'Polish Forces'. KOBIELA was in the Army, as a Corporal; ZARCZYNSKA Army; KOCHAN Cadet- Sergeant Army; LICHOTA Army Cadet; KOPERKIEWICZ Army Captain and CWGC list spelt ZALESKI Army Corporal. There was a wartime Polish population in the Lebanon and the cemetery has a mention: From: Polish people in Lebanon - Wikipedia The CWGC list sixteen Poles are buried in the Lebanon; the others all bar one are in Tripoli Naval Cemetery and one in Sidon Military Cemetery. I would suggest with the exception of KOBIELA, the others died from their injuries elsewhere (Italy where the Poles fought) either on their evacuation voyage, hence burials at Tripoli, or after arrival in Beirut / Sidon. Perhaps there was a Polish Hospital in Beirut? Yes, there was in a Beirut suburb and the Poles had their own hospital in Bari, Italy. I know PAIFORCE had British formations in Syria at the war's end; Lebanon gained independence from France on 22/11/1943. That I shall leave alone.