JEW IMMIGRANTS' SAIL FOR GERMANY

Northern Advocate, 23 August 1947, Page 5

JEW IMMIGRANTS' SAIL FOR GERMANY

(.New Zealand Press Assn—Reuters—-Copyright)

(Received 11.30 a.m.) LONDON, August 22. BRITISH transports at Port de Bouc, with Jewish refugees aboard, weighed anchor at 5.20 GMT today for Hamburg. It is reported that none of the Jews aboard the three ships disembarked.

The Jewish refugees aboard the Empire Vigour, one of three British ships off Port de Bouc, refused the British ultimatum to land in France, says Reuters Paris correspondent. Officials gave the Jewish leaders permission to take a vote on the Ocean Vigour. Half an hour later a Polish spokesman said in German: “We have taken a vote and decided not to disembark.”

An official British spokesman said the immigrants replied by chanting the Zionist anthem. A Jewish spokesman said: “We have no quarrel with the British crew or officers of this ship. We shall maintain order and not disembark in France.”

The Jewish National Executive in Paris, in a request to the United States, France and Russia to take action to prevent disembarking the Jews in Germany, asked them to act through the Allied Control Commission for Germany to stop Jews “being interned in new concenti'ation camps in the country where the Jewish people were victims of the greatest tragedy in .history.” The Vaad Leumi (Jewish National Council) in Jerusalem, sent a cable to Mr Trygve Lie requesting the intervention of the United Nations to prevent shipment of the Jews to Germany. A British Foreign Office spokesman said the United States, Soviet and France would be quite within their rights In discussing at the Allied Control Council in Berlin Britain’s decision to send the Jews to Germany, but Britain would not be legally bound to accept even a majority view about the matter.

preparing for a new wave of terrorist activity, following the transfer of illegal immigrants from Port de Bouc to Germany. Authorities said terrorist groups in Palestine had threatened to re-act if Britain carried out her intention of disembarking the Jews at Hamburg. Reuters Paris correspondent says Jews aboard the transports told journalists who were permitted to board the ships before the departure, that they would not disembark in Germany or anywhere else except Palestine unless they were compelled. The Jews' spokesmen paid a tribute to the behaviour of their British paratroop guards but, as the Press launch left the Runnymede Park the Jews cat-called and shouted anti-British slogans while a group of young people waved a Union Jack on which the swastika had .been daubed. The Jews seemed in good health and showed no marked signs of fatigue. Six sick Jews were brought ashore before the ships sailed escorted by four British warships.

Security authorities in Palestine tonight frankly admitted that they were