The statement yesterday by Prof. John Smertenko, vice-president of the American League for a Free Palestine, defending terrorism in Palestine and stating that terrorist attacks against targets in Britain and elsewhere “will take place whenever a vulnerable target is found,” was attacked today by the Board of Deputies of British Jews as “mischievous irresponsible” and “beneath contempt.”
Pointing out that the American League for a Free Palestine had no connection with any body in England, the Board said that the Smertenko statement was “an abuse of hospitality by a visitor to these shores.” Meanwhile, the Foreign Office denied knowledge of a statement attributed to Foreign Minister Bevin by Smertenko to the effect that British troops must remain in Palestine because of the “threat from Soviet Russia.”
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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.