A three-day session of approximately 1,000 Jewish leaders from the United States and Canada will open in Washington this Friday to inaugurate an intensive campaign to help Israel achieve economic independence. Abraham Feinberg, president of the State of Israel Bond Organization which is sponsoring the conference declared that the delegates will seek to achieve these two major objectives:
1.To enroll large numbers of Americans in a nationwide effort to furnish Israel with the financial means to provide economic opportunities for 40,000 Jews who must be brought out of distress areas in North Africa in the coming year.
2. To enable Israel through expansion of her economic development to overcome the unceasing Arab boycott and economic blockade which have placed added obstacles in the path of Israel’s economic progress during the past seven years.
Israel’s Finance Minister, Levi Eshkol, arrived from Israel today to address the conference in Washington. He declared that he plans to appeal for a greatly stepped up campaign for the sale of Israel bonds in the United States and Canada to provide the economic base for the absorption of large numbers of immigrants from Morocco and other distress areas of North Africa, “The people of Israel are determined to proceed with the immigration of 50,000 Jews from North Africa during the coming year, but this humanitarian project could not be carried on without substantial economic aid from the United States,” he said,
“We are grateful to the American people who have supported Israel bonds during the past four and a half years for giving Israel the economic strength to meet the desperate situation of the Jews of North Africa and to plan for their immigration to Israel. However, investment resources on a large scale will be needed to transform these immigrants into productive citizens,” the Israel Minister stated. Mr. Eshkol was greeted at the airport by Dr. Joseph J. Schwartz, vice president of the Israel Bond Organization, and by representatives of the Israel Government in the United States.
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