The first concrete steps toward bringing relief to suffering Poles and Jews in Warsaw and arranging delivery of money from relatives abroad to all sections of Nazi-occupied Poland have been taken by the Belgian Red Cross, it was announced here today.
A transport of food, medical supplies and underwear, the first to reach war sufferers in Warsaw, will leave Brussels on Jan. 20 to be distributed in the former Polish capital by officials of the Belgian Legation in cooperation with representatives of the Polish population and the Jewish community.
Provision has been made by the Belgian Red Cross to assure that at least one-third of the supplies, corresponding to the Jews’ approximate ratio in the city population, is received by Jews, to whom the Nazi administration has hitherto prohibited distribution of relief.
On the basis of this assurance, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee will contribute towards defraying the cost of the shipment, which will include condensed milk, cacao beans, margarine, anti-epidemic serums, various medicaments and warm underwear for men and women.
The shipment will be addressed to the Belgian Legation in Berlin and will be conveyed from there to Warsaw by members of the legation staff, who will supervise the distribution. Measures have been taken to see that the shipment reaches Warsaw without any hitches and guarantees have been obtained by the Belgian Red Cross that the relief will reach the intended recipients.
The Belgian Red Cross will also begin experimenting in delivery to individuals in all parts of Nazi Poland of monetary relief which relatives and friends in America and elsewhere may wish to send. It is understood that in order to achieve the desired result the Red Cross will accept money for delivery only to individuals whose addresses are definitely known.
At the same time, information reached Paris that the Nazi authorities have established a special clearing bank in Cracow which will convert currency sent from abroad into marks or zlotys at a lower rate than could otherwise be obtained, but will hold the money in blocked accounts from which the addressees in Poland will be permitted to draw weekly a maximum of 100 marks, or the equivalent in zlotys.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
