One of every four Germans in the West German Republic was revealed today in a nation-wide poll to believe that “it would be better for Germany if there were no Jews living there.”
Twenty-six per cent of Germans interviewed by the Institute for Demography for its second “Yearbook of Public Opinion” expressed that opinion, 24 per cent did not think so. Another 17 per cent were undecided and 33 per cent had no opinion.
Ten per cent said that West Germany should work together politically with Israel and 52 per cent said they believed that Israel had been “instigated” to “attack Egypt” by France and Great Britain. One in five West Germans believed Israel launched the Sinai campaign on her own and 28 per cent were undecided.
In assessing blame for the Sinai crisis, 17 per cent believed Israel was “at fault,” 52 per cent blamed England, 29 per cent blamed France and the rest held Egypt or Russia responsible for the Suez war.
The poll found also that 42 per cent of all West Germans were still convinced that Hitler would have been one of the world’s greatest statesmen had it not been for World War II but only three per cent would welcome and support a new Nazi movement while 25 per cent “would do everything” they could to prevent such a party from coming to power.
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.
