Moscow’s renewed offensive against Zionism constitutes an increased threat to Israel’s position and should be reacted to vigorously by American Zionists, Dr. Emanuel Neumann, member of the Jewish Agency executive, told a meeting of the Zionist Organization of America last night, following his return from Israel.
“We must be under no illusion about the significance of the Prague trial,” he said. “It points to something even more serious than a Communist crusade against Zionism and Zionists. The record of the trial bears ample evidence of a revival of the anti-Semitic technique – a cold, cunning, deliberate exploitation of anti-Jewish prejudices for political ends.
“In Israel,” Dr. Neumann reported, “the Prague trial will have a salutary effect in clearing the political atmosphere. Already, earnest heart-searching is going on in the ranks of Mapam. Forced to a choice between a pro-Zionist and a pro-Communist orientation, the great majority of Mapam will, I believe, prove loyal to their Zionist ideals and the paramount interest of the State of Israel, even at the risk of a split with its extremist minority.
“The people of Israel do not wish to court an open break with Soviet Russia, whose political support in the United Nations in the critical years of 1947-48 has not been forgotten. But the overwhelming majority of the Yishuv is united in its sentiment of solidarity with liberal democracy the world over,” Dr. Neumann stated.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
