Jewish refugees interned on the island of Mauritius today cabled a plea to be allowed to actively participate in the fight against Hitlerism as combatants.
In an appeal addressed to Dr. Igancy Schwartzbart, Jewish member of the Polish National Council, some 400 Polish Jews on Mauritius asked him to intervene with the authorities so that they might be enabled to join the Polish forces in Palestine. The Polish War Ministry is now considering the proposal which presents certain difficulties since the Mauritius internees are under British detention until the end of the war.
At the same time Herbert Morrison, Home Secretary, announced in Commons that every effort is being made to secure shipping to transport aliens who have been released from internment in Canada and Australia back to England. In reply to Col. Josiah Wedgwood who suggested that interned Jews who wish to work or fight be released because of “their undoubted hostility to Hitler,” Morrison replied that everything was being done to release aliens who wish to work especially those volunteering for pioneer work. He, however, avoided any specific reference to Jewish internees as a special category.
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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.
