JEWISH REFUGEES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 67, Issue 244, 28 July 1947, Page 3

JEWISH REFUGEES

Return to France from Palestine

FURTHER UNREST IN PALESTINE (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright.) (Rec. 11.0 a.m.) PARIS, July 27. The Prefecture of the Rlioue Department announced that Jewish refugees from the President Warfield, who are in three British transports off the French coast, will be disembarked 30 miles south-east of Marseilles to-morrow morning.

The French Government has given an undertaking to feed the refugees. Rumours persist that many of them are ill.

A Jerusalem, message says that the first post-war Jewish liner, with practically an all-Jewish crew, the “Kedmah,” arrived at Tel-Aviv from London with 195 legal Jewish migrants and other travellers.

The ship will shortly run regularly between Haifa and Marseilles. It is officially announced in Jerusalem that two ships carrying about 1100 illegal immigrants are expected to arrive in Haifa before? midday tomorrow. The refugees will be taken to Cyprus, although the Government has reserved rights regarding the destination of future deportations.

A British Army officer was seriously injured and a soldier slightly injured when a mine blew up a rail trolley patrolling the Jaffa-Tel-Aviv line, bringing the British casualties since the latest wave of terrorism began on July 16 to 10 degd and 76 injured.

The authorities have lifted the restrictions on the people of Nathanya who, since July 14, have been under virtual martial law. The restrictions were imposed while a search was made for two British sergeants kidnapped two days’ earlier. The authorities now believe that the sergeants are not in Nathanya and are searching elsewhere.

Restrictions Lifted

Two Jewish illegal immigrant ships reported in the Mediterranean last week by Royal Air Force planes shadowing them are now nearing the Palestine coast with a total of 1600 passengers with visas. A booby-trap on an underground cable they were repairing killed two members of the Royal Signals on the outskirts of Jerusalem. Terrorists apparently cut the cable and installed the booby-trap. The police swooped on the Jewish quarters on the outskirts of Jerusalem and arrested eix suspected Jewish terrorists, and in a factory and a house seized 100 cases of gelignite, a large quantity of guncotton and booby-trap detonators.

The railway bridge at Benjamina, which was damaged on July 24, has been partially destroyed by a petrol blaze, thus delaying (Tie resumption of the service on the northern section of the Haifa-Cairo railway. The Government’s identification pass office at Tel-Aviv buret into flames. The fire is believed to be the work of arsonists.