American Jewish Youth May Be Precluded from Joining a Jewish Army, Say Weizmann

A call for several thousand Jewish young men and women to proceed to Palestine while the war is going on was issued by Dr. Chaim Weizmann, president of the World Zionist Organization, in a message addressed to American Jewish youth, released today through the Hechalutz Organization of America.

Emphasizing that he hopes to resume discussions with the British government on the subject of a Jewish Army, Dr. Weizmann, who is now back in London, says in his message:

“I cannot say when and if these discussions, which had previously reached an advanced stage, will be successful, but we must be ready to serve when the time comes. Conditions here may preclude the possibility of Jewish Youth in America participating in the struggle in such a military unit in time of war. In that event, American Jewish youth must be ready to do its share by helping the Yishuv to prepare for the absorption of those immigrants who will arrive in masses immediately after the war, and must itself undertake pioneer work in new fields. The arrival in Palestine of a few thousand Jewish youth from America would be of inestimable moral and material value to the National Home. It will serve to establish close bonds between the Yishuv and the Jewish Community in America, and to give the latter a stake in the practical process of Palestine development.”