Bartley C. Crum, American member of the Anglo-American Inquiry Committee on Palestine, today addressed a telegram to Secretary of State James F. Byrnes calling his attention "to the grave consequences" of the release of the ex-Mufti and his departure from France.
"From what I learned as a member of the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry on Palestine it is my conviction that both the Arab League and the Arab Higher Committee intend to bring the Mufti back to Palestine for the purpose of furnishing a rallying point around which all subversive, anti-democratic and violently reactionary forces may gather," the telegram said. "We were warned in Jerusalem by Arab spokesman that the Mufti would return there this year. His record, as disclosed to me from official files, shows that he together with one Eichmann shared in the responsibility for and spearheaded the mass murder of millions of European Jewry.
"May I respectfully suggest that the State Department obtain from the official records available to the counsel in charge of the prosecution of war criminals in Nuremberg and in Vienna, and from our own Intelligence Department, copies of the written agreements between the Mufti and the Nazi Government. I refer particularly to the final agreement signed in Berlin shortly before the surrender of Nazi Germany, at which time huge sums of money in gold were paid to the representative of the Mufti in exchange for his promises to organize the Moslem world and lead it in fighting the ‘common enemy,’ namely, the allied democracies.
"In addition, I suggest that Hauptsturnfuhrer 88 Distar Von Wiszleceny, now in Nuremberg jail as an important witness, be interrogated. In the event that Mr. Wiszleceny’s memory, or anyone else’s, needs refreshing, I shall be glad to furnish the Department with a copy of the interrogation of Mr. Wiszleceny taken in Nuremberg in March, 1946. This interrogation definitely links the Mufti and Eichmann with Himmler in the mass extermination of the Jews.
"His previous activities against the United Nations and in favor of the Axis powers are of course completely documented and available to the Department. So are his subversive activities in Palestine, particularly in the years 1936 to 1939, when he was personally responsible for the serious disorders which cost many lives including the lives of many British soldiers. So are his subsequent activities in Iraq where he, with his cousin Jemal Husseini, was actively associated with Rashid Bey el Gailani in organizing the abortive revolt designed to betray the democratic cause by delivering the Near East into the hands of the Axis.
"There can be no question but that the reappearance of this notorious war criminal and instigator of assassination at this juncture constitutes a serious menace to the peace and order of the Near East and will most probably result in immediate violence and bloodshed. It is also unquestionably timed to frustrate the carrying out of the short term recommendations of the Anglo-American committee. Under the circumstances I would earnestly urge the American Government, acting in concert with the British Government, to take all necessary measure for the immediate apprehension of the ex-Mufti wherever he may be, his extradition, and trial," the telegram concluded.
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.
