In August 1948, information came in that a large percentage of the deserters of the time was living in the Kerem HaTeimanim neighborhood of Tel Aviv. In an operation codenamed "Masrek" ("Comb"), a strict six-hour curfew was imposed and a joint force of the military police and the Israel Police conducted house-to-house searches. More than 200 people were investigated, most of whom were transferred to the absorption base. Former Irgun members who refused to join the IDF following the Altalena affair were also arrested. The provisional military jail was overwhelmed with prisoners, and a mass-escape was staged on October 9, 1948. The prisoners returned voluntarily, but the event raised a scandal which saw the dismissal of several MP commanders, and the prison was handed over to the Kiryati Brigade and Palmach.