The Spanish Loyalist Government was asked today, through Ambassador Pablo de Azcarate, to permit several thousand German-Jewish refugees, held virtual hostages, to leave Spain.
The request was made by the Rev. Maurice L. Perlzweig, Jewish communal and Zionist leader, representing a number of Jewish organizations.
Germans and Italians have not been permitted to leave Loyalist territory since Germany and Italy recalled their diplomatic representatives from Spain and recognized General France’s Government.
Mr. Perlzweig sought exception for the German-Jewish refugees on the grounds that they were no longer German nations (under the Nuremberg laws of 1935 which disenfranchised Jews) and therefore could not properly be held as hostages.
Explaining that the Spanish Government made no distinction between Jews and non-Jews, the Ambassador asked what guarantees could be offered that the persons permitted to leave were genuine refugees rather than Nazis.
Mr. Perlzweig suggested that a Jewish immigration organization which maintains offices at Barcelona and Madrid be given the right to issue certificates to refugees which would testify as to their genuine refugee status.
Ambassador de Azcarate promised to take up the suggestion with his Government immediately and expressed confidence that it would be carried out.
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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.
