Eight thousand Americans, of whom 90 percent are Jews, were in Palestine when Italy declared war on the Allies, the State Department estimated today.
There were more American citizens in Palestine than in either Great Britain or France when those nations entered the war.
The State Department estimated that two-thirds of American Jews in Palestine were naturalized citizens and one-third native born. By far the largest percentage of American Jews were admitted to Palestine on visas providing for permanent residence there.
The J.T.A. learned that there have been few if any requests from Americans in Palestine for aid in leaving the country and that nearly all now regard Palestine as their permanent home and will not take refuge elsewhere.
A proclamation declaring the Mediterranean a belligerent zone forbidden to American shipping, expected to be issued within 48 hours, will close one of the last outlets for emigration of German refugees from Europe.
Among the refugees stranded in Italy are 45 who were scheduled to sail for the Dominican Republic. Officials of the Intergovernmental Refugee Committee here were conducting preliminary discussions on the possibility that a new group of refugees now in England and France might be selected for the Dominican colonization lieu of those held in Italy.
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.
