Sieff Urges Transplanting Palestine Arabs to Iraq to Permit Jewish Emigration

Estimating that from one to three million Jews in Central and Eastern Europe will be reduced to the role of migrants in the post-war period, Israel M. Sieff, noted British industrialist and philanthropist, who is now visiting this country on a mission for the British Government, today proposed that the democratic powers undertake a radical solution of the problem of Jewish homelessness, providing for (1) immigration and settlement in Palestine, with Inter-governmental assistance, of one million Jews in the next 10 years; (2) large sections of the Arab population to be transplanted from Palestine to Iraq, or other parts of the Middle East; and (3) the present geographic boundaries of Palestine be redrafted to include Trans-Jordan, which offers vast areas for colonization.

Following Mr. Sieff’s address which was delivered at a state-wide conference of the New York Region of the United Palestine Appeal at the Ten Eyck Hotel in Albany, more than 500 delegates unanimously adopted a resolution urging President Roosevelt to summon a meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees for the purpose of exploring the possibilities for large-scale Jewish settlement in Palestine in the post-war era.

Mr. Sieff emphasized that even if the democracies are victorious, European Jewry will be compelled to look to other continents for resettlement. Asserting that millions of Jews have been completely uprooted from their traditional life in European lands, the British Jewish leader declared that two roads of planned migration must be explored; the first, to the Western Hemisphere, the second, to Palestine. He warned, however, that any proposal for a large-scale immigration to the American continent might given new impetus to anti-Semitism.

NEW POLITICAL DOCUMENT MUST REPLACE PALESTINE MANDATE, SIEFF SAYS

Asserting that there are "too many loopholes" in the Balfour Declaration and the League of Nations Mandate "used by those hostile to a Jewish Palestinian," Mr. Sieff proposed that a new political document be prepared to safeguard Jewish rights in Palestine and to assure intensified migration and settlement in the Jewish homeland.

"This instrument will have to take account of (1) the large Arab territories; (2) the plan for transplanting Palestinian Arabs to these territories, giving the right to those Palestinian Arabs who so desire to live in a Jewish autonomous area; and (3) it will also have to lay down clearly and unmistakably the right of the Jews to live in freedom in Palestine and to move freely in Palestine, subject to Jewish control," he said. If properly arranged, transplanted Arabs would welcome such a plan, Mr. Sieff added.

The Conference of the United Palestine Appeal was also addressed by Sir Norman Angell, who urged the British Government to pursue a policy of frankness with the Arabs and to impress upon them the fact that "the peace of a vast majority of mankind demands the recognition of the right of the Jews to a homeland." Supporting Mr. Sieff’s proposal for moving the Palestine Arabs into other Arab territory, Sir Norman emphasized that the Arabs are not a homeless people like the Jews but have several states of their own including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria and Trans-Jordanian. He suggested that a plan be initiated to help in the development of other Arab territories so that Arabs in Palestine might emigrate to purely Arab lands where their establishment would be encouraged. British policies in Palestine were denounced by Sir Norman as attempts to appease the Arabs "at the cost of things promised to the Jews."