British Jewry Protests Against Mass Arrests of Jews in Rumania

British Jews today voiced their protest against the arrests and trials of Jewish and Zionist leaders in Rumania and called upon the Rumanian Government to release the prisoners.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews adopted a resolution declaring that British Jewry had been “deeply stirred by the reports of the trials and heavy prison sentences imposed on considerable numbers of Jewish people in Rumania charged with Zionist activities. “

Expressing its protest “against this cruel and unjustifiable persecution of Zionists who are concerned only with the realization of the age-long aspirations of the Jewish people, “the Board called for a halt to the persecutions, nothing that they violated the Rumanian peace treaty of 1947, and appealed for the release of the “Zionist prisoners.”

COMMUNITIES IN BRITISH COMMONWEALTH TO HOLD CONFERENCE

Dr, Abraham Cohen, Board president, reported that a conference of Jewish communities in the British Commonwealth will open in London on June 20. Jewish representative bodies in the following countries have already named their delegates to the parley: South Africa, Australia. Canada, Southern Rhodesia and India. A number of smaller communities are considering the matter at present, Dr. Cohen said.

The main agenda items. Dr. Cohen reported, are: the State of Israel and its relations with the Jewish communities in the Commonwealth; foreign affairs; Christian-Jewish relations and anti-defamation; welfare and charitable effort, and fund-raising; means of maintaining contact and collaboration among the Commonwealth communities on questions of common interest.

Anxiety was expressed at the Board’s meeting today over the United States decision to ship arms to Iraq. It was emphasized that the Board was watching the action of American Jews on this matter.