Two appeals, one directed to President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill and the other to guerilla fighters inside Nazi Europe, asking them to save Jews from German-occupied Hungary and from other Nazi-held territories, were issued today by the Council of the Histadruth, the Palestine Federation of Labor.
Expressing fear concerning the fate of the 900,000 Jews in occupied Hungary, David Remez, Histadruth leader, voiced the feelings of all Jews in Palestine when he stated in his address opening the Council’s sessions that “we tremble for what may happen to the Jews in Hungary if no stern warning will be forthcoming from Roosevelt and Churchill.” Other speakers at the meeting emphasized that there are still possibilities of rescuing Jews from Nazi territory.
INVESTIGATOR REPORTS ON JEWISH SITUATION INSIDE NAZI EUROPE
Mr. Remez also appealed to Jews in Palestine “to redouble enlistment in the fighting forces.” His appeal was made in connection with renewed demands of the Jewish Agency for the establishment of a Jewish Army based on the thousands of Jews who enlisted in Palestine as volunteers in the British fighting forces.
Moshe Neustadt, a leading member of the Histadruth, who just returned from an undisclosed country, where he organized the rescue of Jews from Nazi lands, gave a detailed report on the Jewish situation inside Nazi Europe. He confirmed that Jews can still be saved from German-occupied countries and appealed to Jewish leaders in all free countries “to spare no efforts and save what can still be rescued.” He especially directed his appeal to the Jews in England and America, urging them to use all means in their possession to speed rescue work. “Today it is still possible to save people, but who knows what will be tomorrow,” he said.
MOBILIZATION OF JEWISH YOUTH FOR TWO-YEAR SERVICE URGED
The suggestion that Jewish youth in Palestine, from 17 to 19 years of age, be mobilized for two years of national service was made by Isaac Tobenkin, one of the Histadruth leaders.
Other matters discussed at the meeting were “the destructive economic policy of the Palestine Government;” the recently introduced new taxation system which forces the minority of the population to pay the bulk of the taxes; the high cost of living; combatting the black market and post-war reconstruction schemes.
A proposal to convoke a world conference of Jewish financiers for the purpose of preparing “big financial plans” for the development of Palestine was made at the session by H. Frumkin, an economic expert, who said that Palestine can compete with foreign industries in the export market providing industrialists here are supplied with sufficient raw material and modernize their plants.
Frumkin criticized the economic and the building policies of the Palestine Government and asked that the administration in Palestine follow the policy of the United States in assisting agricultural construction and in considering such construction as an important part of the war effort. He also demanded that the Jewish Agency give financial assistance to the Palestine citrus industry which he predicted will, in the future, be one of the pillars of Palestine’s economy. He hinted that important research and practical work is being conducted for the reclamation of farm land under a huge irrigation scheme.
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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.
