The British Government has rejected a plea by the Board of Deputies of British Jews that the Haganah be given legal statue and that Arab invaders of Palestine be expelled by the British Army, it was revealed here today with the release of an. exchange of correspondence between Prime Minister Clement Attlee and Prof. Selig Brodetsky, president of the Beard.
Pointing to the difficulties encountered by British forces in Palestine when they attempted to suppress Jewish extremists, the Prime Minister asserted that rounding up their “Arab counterparts” would prove difficult. He refused to legalize the Haganah on the grounds that the government refuses to share its responsibility for the maintenance of law and order with any other force. He added that the government would continue to enforce impartially its bane against the increase of stores of offensive weapons by either side, but would not “remove from either community arms which may legitimate be regarded as necessary for their defense” when the British evacuate.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hector McNeil, addressing a meeting of Glasgow University students, denied reports that the British were arming the Arab in Palestine. He insisted that neither side has received any weapons. He asserted that “no one has shown one piece of evidence” that British arms are filtering through to Palestine.
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