Returning from a visit to the scene of Monday’s violence, during which he attended funeral services for the dead, Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver, president of the Zionist Organization of America, described the use of British soldiers “in the dirty work of attacking defenseless men, women and children,” as a “great evil.”
At a press conference later, he stated that Dr. Chaim Weizmann should have resigned as president of the Jewish Agency ten days ago when several Jews were killed by British troops during disturbances in Tel Aviv, and “he has a new opportunity now.”
Dr. Silver said that the fate of Palestine will not be settled by the projected Anglo-American commission of inquiry, but by the United Nations Organization, “and we are preparing our best talent for the battle there.” Questioned concerning the Russian attitude to Zionism, the American Zionist leader said that “it is a mystery now, but we must explore this to the utmost, since it is inconceivable that the Palestine problem will ever receive a proper solution without reference to the greatest power bordering the Middle East.”
Pledging the support of Jews in the United States, Dr. Silver said that “5,000,000 American Jews have taken it upon themselves to help you. They will not rest until the doors of Palestine are open, and they are satisfied that they never again will close. We know that the Yishuv is a responsible body,” he continued, “and is not acting impulsively, especially now when its life is at stake. Whatever you do here we will back you up. The more herioc your actions, the stronger our support.”
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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.
