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6 Jews Killed in New Arab Attacks; 4 Die in Ambush of Taxicab

March 29, 1938
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Renewed Arab violence today claimed the lives of six Jews, including a 70-year-old widow and an 8-year-old boy, climaxing one of the bloodiest week-ends in the holy land since the 1936 Arab rebellion.

Four of the victims were slain in an ambush of a Jewish-owned taxicab, carrying a load of nine passengers and the driver, in northern Palestine. A girl and the driver were missing after the attack, believed to be captives of the Arab band. Police engaged the assailants and were reported to have killed three, but the remainder escaped and tonight Royal Air Force planes were hunting them.

The attack, which occurred near Sajara, a village between acre and Safed, followed the discovery this morning in Jerusalem’s Nashashibi quarter of the bullet-riddled bodies of two young emigres from Germany. Over the week-end a Jewish worker was killed in Haifa and a Jewish colonist died of wounds suffered in an attack last week.

All of the dead in the taxi ambush were residents of Safed, where the entire Jewish community was in mourning over the victims. The slain were: The widow Baral, 70; her daughter, Mrs. Cahana, 47; Zvi Segal,45, a grocer; Baruch david, 8, Segal’s son.

Missing were Miss Zippora Mozeri, 18 of Haifa, and Bechar Zacharov, 25, the driver. Zeide heller, 41, and shalom Biber, 22, of acre, escaped, the latter carrying his year-old son. Mrs. Cahana’s daughter was found safe, cowering near the car.

Bodies of the slain were taken by police to acre. Funeral services will be held tomorrow.

As a result of the renewed attacks, the authorities revived the practice of permitting travel only in caravans.

The slain youths from Germany were brothers, Richard and Werner Traube. Both were shot by unknown assailants last night as they were returning from a job-hunting trip to the Czechoslovak monastery on the mt. Of olives. Werner, 23, who came from berlin two years ago, was understood to have been a convert to catholicism and had been employed as a gardener at a monastery. Richard, 19, who came here 18 months ago, was believed not to have been a convert. The German consulate is investigating.

A band of 50 Arabs last night blockaded the Jerusalem road near Hebron, robbed the passengers of two Arab busses and looted and set fire to a post office truck. The band was dispersed by police, who wounded two bandits and captured another.

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