Release of Jews from Mauritius Credited to Intervention of Palestine High Commissioner

The Jewish Agency is taking steps to facilitate the transportation to Palestine of the Jews being released from internment on the island of Mauritius, it was announced here by Moshe Shertok, head of the Agency’s political department. He revealed that Palestine High Commissioner Lord Gort had strongly recommended to the Colonial Office the immediate release of the Jews from Mauritius and their re-admission to Palestine from where they were deported as illegal entrants.

According to figures made public by the Palestine Government, there are about 1,400 Jews interned on Mauritius. Approximately 100 Jewish internees died there, some of the internees enlisted in the Czechoslovak Army, others volunteered for British sapper units, while 70 recently joined the Jewish Brigade.

(In Washington, the British Embassy announced that naval security renders it impossible to announce before hand the transport arrangements for the Mauritius refugees, but the embassy will publish any information on this point which can safely be released, “Applications have been received by the Embassy on behalf of individual refugees whom it is desired to bring to this country,” the announcement said. “In view of the great difficulty of finding direct transportation from Mauritius to the United States, it is the Embassy’s opinion that it would be more practical for those concerned to travel with the main body to Palestine and on arrival there to start making the necessary arrangements for immigration to the United States. Such immigration, of course, depends entirely upon the consent of the United States authorities.”)