Israeli Immigration Minister Moshe Shapira will leave for Cyprus early next week to make and supervise arrangements for the early transfer of some 12,000 interned Jewish refugees from the island to Israel, it was announced here today in a special broadcast on Kol Israel, the government radio.
From Famagusta, Cyprus port, it was reported today that Rabbi I. Schreibaum, Jewish Agency representative on the island, stated that he hoped that a 4,500-ton vessel would arrive today from Haifa to take on the first 2,000 refugees. He said it would be possible to transport the first group to Haifa tomorrow and clear the camps completely within ten days or two weeks.
The Agency revealed here that it has allocated its most luxurious ships to bring 1,200 Cyprus Jews to Israel on each trip. The first such voyage will probably be made early next week, the Agency said, adding that it has made arrangements with the Red Mogen Dovid to have three physicians including a gynecologist–three nurses and all necessary medical equipment go to Cyprus on the first available vessel to accompany the detainees back to Israel. It was revealed here that the 11,000 Cyprus Jews include 800 infants and 275 pregnant women.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
