1942: Palestine

The year 1942 passed peacefully in Palestine, yet the serious fundamental problems which were at the bottom of the revolutionary disorders that had upset life in Palestine for the last five years, were in no way nearer solution. On the one hand the Zionists emphasized the tragedy which had befallen the Jews in all the European countries under German domination, and demanded the wide opening of Palestine to Jewish mass immigration, and the creation in Palestine of a Jewish commonwealth. They centered their efforts on influencing the British and American governments and people to that end. Especially they urged the formation of a Jewish army in Palestine, formed of Palestinian and stateless Jews who would fight on the side of the Allies against Nazi Germany. On the other hand the Arabs were determined to maintain Palestine as an Arab country. They were supported in their demands by the governments and peoples of Saudi Arabia, of Egypt, of Iraq and Syria. They saw in the creation of a Jewish army a dangerous threat to their own position after the war. They reminded the British of the strategic importance of Arab friendship in the Middle East and pleaded before the United Nations the right of the Palestinian Arabs to national self-determination.

Jewish Opposition to Zionism.

While during the war outward peace was preserved in Palestine and revolutionary unrest subsided, both Jewish and Arab parties became more intransigent in their attitude. Some Jewish intellectuals under the leadership of Dr. Judah L. Magnes, President of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, founded a Union Association, opposed to the official Zionist demand for the establishment of Palestine as a Jewish state. The Association regards union between the Jewish and Arab peoples as essential for building up Palestine and for meeting its basic problems. It strives for cooperation between the Jewish and Arab worlds in all branches of life. It demands a government in Palestine based upon equal political rights, this Palestine to form a federative union with the neighboring countries which would guarantee the national rights of all the peoples, and it insists finally that this federation should join a union of all free peoples. This point of view was however strictly rejected by the Zionists.

Participation in War.

On Aug. 6, 1942, the British secretary of war, Sir James Grigg, announced in the British Parliament that a Palestine regiment was to be created at once which would consist of separate Jewish and Arab infantry battalions. This regiment would serve in the Middle East. He declared that there would be no insistence on Arab and Jewish numerical parity. He estimated the number of Palestinian Jews serving with units of the British army in the Middle East at 14,000, and declared that Palestinian and stateless Jews had abundant opportunity to take part in the struggle against the Axis. The newly created Palestine Volunteer Force would be expanded as quickly as arms, equipment, and training facilities became available. In addition establishment of Jewish rural police would be completed by the enrollment of 1,500 additional recruits. The Palestine police force was declared to be a military force for the duration of the war, and liable for employment in the defense of Palestine.

Jewish Immigration.

Jewish immigration was of course very much hindered both by war and transport difficulties. The British White Paper, governing the policy applied in Palestine, and issued on May 17, 1939, had limited the number of Jewish immigrants to Palestine to 75,000 for the next five years. According to official figures the number of Jewish immigrants between April 1, 1939 and Sept. 30, 1941 amounted to 35,021 (of whom 18,459 had entered the country illegally). Thus as of Oct. 1, 1941, a quota of 39,979 Jewish immigrants could still find admission. The war situation in the Near East made Palestine an important economic base for British and United Nations armies. The many modern industries created by Jewish immigrants in Palestine in recent years were found most useful for supplying some of the needs of the armed forces. The economic situation among the Jewish settlers was therefore satisfactory. Measures were adopted by the Government to insure the equitable distribution of essential foodstuffs and to prevent excessive speculation and rise in prices. Maximum prices were established for cereals, sugar, butter, fats and beverages. The new legislation was intended to protect cultivator and consumer alike. Energetic measures were taken to increase agricultural production, so as to make Palestine more self-sufficient and to economize on British shipping space.

Finance and Legislation.

The year's expenditure in the Palestine budget was set at £10,514,685. Of this sum £2,207,404 was authorized for police and prisons, £1,409,153 for the Palestine railways and £1,343,545 for public works. Two important pieces of legislation should be mentioned. One concerns the problems of labor in war-time. An order of the High Commissioner issued under defense regulations prohibited strikes and lockouts. Any dispute between workers and employers must be decided by the district commissioner by arbitration and conciliation. A second piece of legislation concerned an advance in local self-government in Palestine. All villages will elect committees to administer problems of local health and well-being.

Terrorism.

The Jewish community in Palestine was greatly disturbed at the beginning of 1942 by the terrorist activities of a small group of extremist Zionist youth who had accepted Fascist ideology, had organized terroristic action against the Arabs and were now in violent opposition to the official Zionist bodies. On Jan. 20, 1942, they engineered a fatal mine explosion in Tel Aviv which took the life of three Jewish police officers. The head of the group, Abraham Stern, was killed while resisting arrest on Feb. 12. Although attempts at overcoming party strife within the Jewish community were not successful, all parties remained united in their demand for a Jewish commonwealth and for Jewish mass immigration.