Jewish leaders here have approached the Colonial Office to discuss the question of Yemenite Jewish refugees fleeing to Aden en route to Israel, it was learned today.
The Jewish leaders acted after a broadcast announcement that the British authorities in Aden have approached Yemen with a request that it cut off the flow of Jewish refugees to the British protectorate. The argument advanced by the Aden authorities is that a further influx of Jews may bring about a recurrence of anti-Jewish outbreaks, in Aden.
The Colonial Office has no confirmation of the alleged Aden move and has made inquiries of the Aden Government. Unofficially, sources close to the Colonial Office expressed the view that the report from the Middle East refers to the period when the Aden camps were congested. These sources believe that the Joint Distribution Committee’s airlift has sufficiently relieved the situation to make further restrictions superfluous. It has been confirmed that restrictions on the departure from Aden previously imposed on men of military age seeing to go to Israel have now been lifted.
(From Tel Aviv it was reported that Harry Viteles, J.D.C. director for the Middle East, is flying to Aden to make arrangements for the transportation from Aden to Israel of Yemenite Jews of military age whom the British authorities have finally released from a refugee camp.)
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