News Brief

SUCH A CONFEDERATION, TO BE ESTABLISHED WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF FRANCE AND THE “FULL COORDINATION” OF THE ZIONIST MOVEMENT, WOULD COMPRISE ARABIA, SYRIA, LEBANON AND PALESTINE, AND WOULD GIVE PALESTINE A “HINTERLAND MARKET.”

THE SAMUEL PLAN PROPOSES THAT ISLAM’S HOLY PLACES BE GUARANTEED BY THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS AND THAT JEWISH AND ARAB COMMUNAL ORGANIZATIONS BE CREATED TO CONTROL THE DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR OWN PEOPLE. IT SUGGESTS A CENTRAL ADVISORY COUNCIL BE ESTABLISHED TO REPRESENT BOTH COMMUNITIES WITH BRITISH OFFICIALS ACTING IN AN ADVISORY CAPACITY.

LORD SNELL OPENS DEBATE

THE OPPOSITION’S OPENING GUN IN THE DEBATE WAS FIRED BY LORD SNELL, WHO IN 1930 WAS THE ONLY DISSENTING MEMBER OF THE SHAW COMMISSION WHICH INVESTIGATED THE 1929 ARAB ANTI-JEWISH RIOTS.

(ALTHOUGH HE SIGNED THE COMMISSION’S REPORT, THE THEN MR. SNELL DID SO WITH A NOTE OF RESERVATION IN WHICH HE DECLARED HE WAS UNABLE TO ASSOCIATE HIMSELF WITH SOME OF ITS CRITICISMS AND CONCLUSIONS WITH REFERENCE TO THE JEWS AND EXPRESSED THE VIEW THAT GREATER RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE RIOTS SHOULD HAVE BEEN PLACED ON THE SHOULDERS OF THE ARAB POLITICAL LEADERS.)

PUTTING THE LABOR PARTY ON RECORD TODAY AS OPPOSED TO PARTITION, LORD SNELL CHARGED THE ROYAL COMMISSION WITH YIELDING TO DESPAIR.

THE COMMISSION, HE DECLARED, HAD HANDED OVER THE PATIENT FOR A “SURGICAL OPERATION WHICH WAS MORE DANGEROUS THAN THE DISEASE” AND HAD ARRIVED AT THE CONCLUSION THAT PALESTINE COULD NOT BE UNITED UNTIL IT HAD BEEN DIVIDED.

THE SPEAKER SHARPLY CRITICIZED THE GOVERNMENT FOR RUSHING ACCEPTANCE OF THE REPORT WITHOUT CONSULTING PARLIAMENT.

“WE ARE NOT YET,” HE SAID, “A FASCIST STATE. PARLIAMENT OUGHT TO COUNT FOR SOMETHING.”

PARTITION TERMED “VIVISECTION”

LORD SNELL EXPRESSED WONDER AT THE CAUSES MOTIVATING THE GOVERNMENT TO RUSH PARTITION AND ASKED IF THE UNITED STATES HAD CONSENTED TO THE “VIVISECTION” OF PALESTINE. HE DESCRIBED THE DROPPING OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS MANDATE (IN FORCE SINCE 1920) AS A “NATIONAL HUMILIATION.”

REFERRING TO DETAILS IN THE PROPOSED PARTITION AMONG JEWS, ARABS AND BRITISH, HE ATTACKED THEM AS UNFAIR TO THE JEWS AND DEMANDED THAT THE SOUTHERN TERRITORY OF NEGEB, WHICH THE ROYAL COMMISSION PROPOSAL GIVES TO THE ARAB STATE, BE RETAINED UNDER A MANDATE FOR DEVELOPMENT BY THE JEWS AND ARABS. LORD SNELL DECLARED A “TOY KINGDOM” MIGHT GIVE THE JEWS A CULTURAL HOME BUT WOULD NOT TOUCH THE JEWISH PROBLEM.

ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY ASKS ARAB-JEWISH CONFERENCE

CONVOCATION OF AN ARAB-JEWISH CONFERENCE TO CONSIDER SETTLEMENT ALONG SOME OTHER LINE THAN PARTITION WAS SUGGESTED BY THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY. THE ARCHBISHOP AGREED WITH, THE ROYAL COMMISSION’S CONCLUSIONS THAT AN ULTIMATE DEADLOCK WAS INHERENT IN THE TERMS OF THE PALESTINE MANDATE.

EMPHASIZING THE PLIGHT OF JEWS IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE, BARON MELCHETT POINTED OUT THAT THE MAIN OBJECT OF A JEWISH NATIONAL HOME WAS TO RELIEVE THEIR SUFFERINGS. HE DEMANDED THAT THE PALESTINE ADMINISTRATION GOVERN WITH A FIRM HAND WHICH, HE SAID, WOULD ALONE MAKE CONCILIATION POSSIBLE.

THE EARL OF LYTTON COMPLAINED THAT THE ROYAL COMMISSION AND GOVERNMENT HAD BOTH ACCEPTED PARTITION TOO READILY, AND BARON LAMINGTON ADVISED THAT A PROPOSAL BE CONSIDERED FOR SETTLING JEWS IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD TO RELIEVE PRESSURE IN PALESTINE.

BARON LUGARD, BRITISH MEMBER OF THE LEAGUE MANDATES COMMISSION, ADVISED THE LORDS TO APPROVE PARTITION, DECLARING IT THE ONLY SCHEME WHICH COULD LEAD TO A FAVORABLE SETTLEMENT. HE EXPRESSED SURPRISE THAT THE PALESTINE GOVERNMENT HAD ALLOWED THE GRAND MUFTI TO CARRY ON INTRIGUES AGAINST BRITISH RULE.

THE DEBATE WAS ADJOURNED UNTIL TOMORROW AFTERNOON.

THE HOUSE OF LORDS WAS FILLED FOR THE DEBATE, WHICH WAS ON A MOTION FOR AN EXPRESSION OF CONFIDENCE IN THE GOVERNMENT UPON ITS PALESTINE POLICY. THE MOTION WAS EXPECTED TO BE CARRIED BY AN OVERWHELMING MAJORITY.

THE HOUSE OF COMMONS WILL DEBATE THE ISSUE TOMORROW, ALSO ON A QUESTION OF CONFIDENCE IN THE GOVERNMENT, WITH THE SAME RESULT EXPECTED.