Figure 1.--.
|
Figure 1.--. |
The NAZIs never reached Palestine. With the German invasion of Poland, terrible rumors began to reach Palestine about NAZI attrocities. After the fall of France and the withdrawl of the French fleet, Palestine itself became threatened by the Axis. The British 8th Army stopped and subsequently defeated the Afrika Korps at El Alemain (July-October 1942). The NAZIs, however, had an ally in the Grand Mufti of Jurelselum. The Arabs both in Palestine and most other areas supported the NAZIs. There was only the open revolt in Iraq (1941), but most Arabs supported the NAZIs. This was for the most part because the British were the colonial power and the Germans had no Arab colonies. Anti-Semitism was a further factor in Palestine, but much less so among other Arabs. Outside of Iraq, the Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini issued a formal fatwa-- "a holy war against Britain" (May 1941). The Mufti's announced the fatwa in Iraq and helped to launch "the pro-Nazi" Iraqi uprising. At the time the NAZIs had just seized Greece and Crete, convincing the Iraqis that with Axis aid they could drive out the British. The uprising suprized the NAZIs who were not prepared for it. The NAZI Arab policy was in some way constrained because of Hitler's focus on Russia and his willingness to give deference to Musollini when dealing with the Arabs. The Arab revolt in Iraq was of considerable significance. Iraqwas the source of the oil used by the British Mediterranean Fleet and the 8th Army fishing the Afrika Korps in the Western Desert. The British supressed the Iraqi Revolt (March 1941) with a pick up force from Palestine and then an Indian Division rushed to Iraq. Husseini escaped first to Tehran and then to Italy, finally reaching Berlin. He was enthusiastic received by the "Islamische Zentralinstitut" and the small Islamic community of Germany which due deference to the NAZIs pronounced him the "Führer of the Arabic world." Husseini's first speech in Berlin denounced the Jews as the "most fierce enemies of the Muslims" and an "ever corruptive element" in the world. Arab supporters of the NAZIs seemed to have blithy assumed that they would be liberated by the Axis and thus achieve independence. It is difficult to see how any minimally educated observer in 1940-41 could have reached that conclusion, especially given Italian conduct in Libya and German conduct in the Occupied East. Another largely ignored question is the fact that the Arabs are also semmites. NAZI racist science claimed that the Jews had genitically carried diseases. One wonders why the Arabs did not carry these diseases. Of course the NAZIracist science was a pseudo science so they could invent an Arab people free of such contamination. Husseini was an honored guest of the NAZI's in Berlin. He was received by Hitler twice. He pressed Hitler on the last group of Jews left in NAZI hands--the Hungarian Jews. He did not want them to be allowed to escape, fearing they would come to Palestine. Adolf Eichman at the time was attempting to negotiate with the British to exchange 5,000 Hungarian children for German POWs. Husseini's point of view prevalied. The SS were dispatched the children to the NAZI death camps in Poland. Husseini is reported to have visited Auschwitz and encouraged the SS staff operating the gas chambers to work harder. Husseini was exploited by Goebbels' propaganda machine and made numerous broadcasts in Arabic to the Middle East promoting the NAZIs and giving virulently anti-Semitic sermons.
Plaestine was part of Ottman Empire for several centuries. The province has a largely Arab population. Zionism was founded in Europe during the 19th century and promoted emmigration to Palestine with the purpose of founding a Jewish homeland. The Ottomons permited small-scale Jewish emmigration. The Ottomans joined the Central Powers in World War I seeking to regain lost territory in the Balkans. As part of the operations of the Arab Army and Col T.H. Lawrence and a 1917 Britih offensive under Allenby, Palestine fell. After the War, the British administered Palestine under a League of Nations trusteeship. The British saw Palestine as a potentially valuable assett in the defense of Suez. Yhis proved to be the case when war came. The Arab population was restive, but the British used Palestine as a staging area for operations against pro-MAZI elements in Iraq and Vichy authorities in Syria. Securing Iraq with its important oil resource was vital for the defense of Suez. The rise of Fascism in Europe encouraged many Jews to seek refugee and strengthened the Zionist movement. The British attempted to restrict Jewish immmigration. The expanding Jewish population also resulted in growing anti-Semitism among the Palestinians. This had opposition to British colonial rule caused many Palestinians to sympethize and seek support from the NAZIs.
The NAZIs never reached Palestine. Thus Palesinian Jews were spared the Holocaust, although there were occastional attacks from Palestinian Arabs. With the German invasion of Poland, terrible rumors began to reach Palestine about NAZI attrocities. After the fall of France and the withdrawl of the French fleet, Palestine itself became threatened by the Axis. Italy had a powerful Mediterranean fleet. When the Italian invasion of Egypt faltered (September 1940), they were reinforced with German units which became known as the Afrika Korps. The Commander of the Afrika Korps, Erwin Rommel, was not associated with NAZI war crimes, but in the areas of North SAfrica controlled by the Germans, anti-Semetic laws were enforced and there are reports of the SS preparing to murder Tunisian Jews before the Germans were defeated. In Palestine the Germans would have a willing local population to assist with the muder of Jews. The British 8th Army stopped and subsequently defeated the Afrika Korps at El Alemain (July-October 1942). This removed the threat to Jews in Palestine. Jews in Palestine, however, had stopped receiving letters from their families in Europe.
The NAZIs had an ally in the Grand Mufti of Jurelselum. Haj Amin al-Husseini as a young man incited Palestinian Arab feeling against the Jews and fomented riots in wgich Jews were killed. He aplauded Hitler's seizure of power in Germany (1933). The Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini issued a formal fatwa-- "a holy war against Britain" (May 1941). The Mufti's announced the fatwa in Iraq and helped to launch "the pro-Nazi" Iraqi uprising. At the time the NAZIs had just seized Greece and Crete, convincing the Iraqis that with Axis aid they could drive out the British. When the revolt failed, Husseini escaped first to Tehran and then to Italy, finally reaching Berlin. He was enthusiastic received by the "Islamische Zentralinstitut" and the small Islamic community of Germany which due deference to the NAZIs pronounced him the "Führer of the Arabic world." Husseini's first speech in Berlin denounced the Jews as the "most fierce enemies of the Muslims" and an "ever corruptive element" in the world. Arab supporters of the NAZIs seemed to have blithy assumed that they would be liberated by the Axis and thus achieve independence. It is difficult to see how any minimally educated observer in 1940-41 could have reached that conclusion, especially given Italian conduct in Libya and German conduct in the Occupied East. Another largely ignored question is the fact that the Arabs are also semmites. NAZI racist science claimed that the Jews had genitically carried diseases. One wonders why the Arabs did not carry these diseases. Of course the NAZIracist science was a pseudo science so they could invent an Arab people free of such contamination. Husseini was an honored guest of the NAZI's in Berlin. He was received by Hitler twice. He pressed Hitler on the last group of Jews left in NAZI hands--the Hungarian Jews. He did not want them to be allowed to escape, fearing they would come to Palestine. Adolf Eichman at the time was attempting to negotiate with the British to exchange 5,000 Hungarian children for German POWs. Husseini's point of view prevalied. The SS were dispatched the children to the NAZI death camps in Poland. Husseini is reported to have visited Auschwitz and encouraged the SS staff operating the gas chambers to work harder. Husseini was exploited by Goebbels' propaganda machine and made numerous broadcasts in Arabic to the Middle East promoting the NAZIs and giving virulently anti-Semitic sermons. After the defeat of the NAZIs, al-Husseini managed to escape to Egypt where he was granted asylum. There he strongly influenced men like Yasser Arafat, Gamel Abdul Nassar, and Anwar Sadat.
The uprising suprized the NAZIs who were not prepared for it. The NAZI Arab policy was in some way constrained because of Hitler's focus on Russia and his willingness to give deference to Musollini when dealing with the Arabs. Strangely the Fascist message was well received in the Arab world, despite the vicious colonial war that Mussolini had waged in Libya, including the use of poison gas.
The Arab revolt in Iraq was of considerable significance. Iraq was the source of the oil used by the British Mediterranean Fleet and the 8th Army fishing the Afrika Korps in the Western Desert. The British fought World War II primarily with American oil. The exceptin was the 8th Army and the Royal Navy Eastern Mediterranean squadron which used Iraqi oil. This was a major advantage they had over the Afrika Korps which had the greatest difficulty obtainibg oil. The British supressed the Iraqi Revolt (March 1941) with a pick up force from Palestine and an Indian Division rushed to Iraq.
The Arabs both in Palestine and most other areas supported the NAZIs. There was only the open revolt in Iraq (1941), but most Arabs supported the NAZIs. This was for the most part because the British were the colonial power and the Germans had no Arab colonies. Anti-Semitism was a further factor in Palestine, but much less so among other Arabs. Fascism strongly influenced Arab nationalists. Early Arab political parties such as The Syrian Popular Party anf Young Egypt were organized on Fascist models. Here the Grand Mufti was an important influence.
There has since the founding of Islam been a element of anti-Semtism. Christians and Jews were seen as "people of the book" and thus given special status. They were tolerated to differing degrees by various Islamic rulers. Generally until modern times Islamic regimes were more tolerant to the Jews than Christian kingdoms. This changed in the 20th century. The virulently anti-Semetic racism of NAZI Germany has become widely accepted to vaying degrees in the Islamic world. Here the Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini asppears to have played a seminal role. One Jewish scholar argues that the Cromwell's charge that Pope Pius XII was Hitler's pope is both misleading an inaccurate. [Dalin] He argues that Hitler did have a cleric and that it was Grand Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini who was complicit in the Holocaust.
The most tragic part of researching the Holocaust is the story of actual individuals. For Palestine this means accounts of Jewish residents as well as those European Jews that managed to reach Palestine. Some European Jews survived, by reaching Palestine, but it was a very difficult to escape NAZI-occupied Europe and even if they succeeded in doing this there were many other difficulties including the Turks, Vichy regimes in Syria and Lebanon, Arabs, U-boats, the Italian Navy and even the Royal Navy. And even if they got to Palestine there was the British authorities which attemoted to restrict Jewish immigration. One such account is that of Israel Baruch, a young Bulgarian Jew.
Dalin, David. The Myth of Hitler's Pope
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