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Campaign Launched to Aid ‘trepper’

January 12, 1972
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The Jewish mass exodus from Poland during the last three years has been attended by none of the difficulties encountered by Jews trying to emigrate from the Soviet Union. One exception is Leib Domb, alias Trepper, the Polish-born Jew who headed the Soviet spy network in Western Europe during World War II. His son, Michael Brojde-Domb, who teaches English in Copenhagen, arrived here today to launch a public campaign to get Polish authorities to allow his father to emigrate to Israel.

Trepper was known during the war as the “conductor” of the “Red Orchestra.” He was the chief Soviet undercover agent during the Nazi occupation of France and the information his spy network gathered reportedly contributed substantially to the Allied victory. After the war he flew to Moscow to be “rewarded” by a ten year jail term at Stalin’s orders. Freed and rehabilitated after the dictator’s death, Trepper returned to his native Poland where he lived quietly. Several years ago he applied for a visa to go to Israel but was refused by the Polish authorities.

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