Pierre Laval, the pro-Nazi chief of Government, today assumed full control over the Jews in unoccupied France and enforcement of anti-Jewish laws there in a decree published in the Journal Official here. The decree formally transfers the control of Jewish affairs from the Ministry of Interior to the office of the Chief of Government.
Meanwhile, Louis Darquier de Pellepoix, new Commissar for Jewish Affairs, today appealed in the French press to all Frenchmen “to collaborate” in the task of completely purging Jews from the economic, cultural and social life of the nation.
A hint that French Jews may soon be compelled to don yellow Mogen David badges was contained in a broadcast on the Paris radio today. The broadcaster stated: “Frenchmen must no longer be exposed to contact with people who have caused their ruin without being able to recognize them immediately.”
The Jews in the former French capital who are still at liberty are being rounded up. A number of Jews attempting to avoid arrest have shot their Gestapo pursuers, while yesterday a Jew who was on the point of being captured by Gestapo agents committed suicide in the street.
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.
