The rift within the Jewish communities in Morocco over the naming of a Jewish member to the Moroccan Cabinet resulted in demonstrations and street fighting in Marrakesh, one of the largest Jewish communities in the country. Police were forced to use tear gas to disperse the demonstrators. There were no casualties.
The post of Minister for Post and Telegraph in the Moroccan Cabinet which was assigned to any Jew the community may select, is still not filled. The schism among the Jewish community leaders is being carefully watched by the Sultan as well as by the leading nationalist Moslem parties which are interested in having a Jewish member in the Cabinet who would be acceptable to all elements in Moroccan Jewry, since he would be considered the representative of all Jews in Morocco.
Meanwhile, a meeting of the Organization of Young Moroccan Jews today adopted a resolution urging Prime Minister Bekkai to choose for the Cabinet post a Jew who could be considered “a Moroccan patriot.” This implies that they do not want any candidate who had displayed pro-French leanings during the fight between the Moroccan nationalists and France for securing internal independence for Morocco from France.
The meeting, attended by about 700 young Moroccan Jews, also adopted a resolution “to join in brotherly cooperation with our Moslem fellow-citizens toward building the new democratic Morocco.” The speakers at the meeting also included representative from all Moslem nationalist parties, student leaders, and representatives of Moslem and Jewish trade unions.
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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.
