Figure 1.--The British attempted to counter this by issuing a White Paper before the War began withdrrawing their support for a Jewish homeland. Palestine's location closed to the Suez Canal made it a possession of some strategic importance. The result was limiting Jewish immigration qotas. This continued throughout the Word War II when despoerate Kews were attemptung to escpe NAZI occupied Europe. Here Holocaust survivors arrive in #haifa on the British refugee ship 'Mataroa' (July 15, 1945). These surviving Jewish youth from Europe, some still in camp uniforms and with tattoos from NAZI camps on their forearms, were not allowed into Palestine.

NAZI diplomacy with its anti-British and anti-Semitic approached appealed to the Arabs. Here they met considerable sympathy both because of rising anti-Semitism and opposition to British colonialism. The British attempted to counter this by issuing a White Paper before the War began withdrrawing their support for a Jewish homeland. Palestine's location closed to the Suez Canal made it a possession of some strategic importance. As Europe moved toward war, the British Governent organized a conference of Arabs and Jews to discuss the future of Palestine and difuse the disorders that broke out with the Arab revolt. The meeting became known as the St. James or Round Table Conference of 1939. The British attempted to bring together Arab and Jewish representatives. The Jews were represented by the Jewish Agency (Zionist and non-Zionist groups) led by Chaim Weizmann. The Arabs delegation was led by the Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini, but the delegation included the more moderate party of the well-known al-Nashashibi family. The Arab delegation included non-Palestinian Aranbs (Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Transjordan, and Yemen). The Conference did not go well. Al-Husseini refused to even meet with the Jewish representatives. The resulting British White Paper was crafted to help reverse increasing Arab sympathy with the NAZIs (1939). The Jewish Agency in Palestine rejected the White Paper and charged that it was a deninal of the Balfour Declaration as well as Britain's responsibilities under the League of Nations Mandate. The Jews were especially concerned about the British decession to permanently restrict Jewish immigration, at a time when Jews were being brutalized by the NAZIs and Fasist forces in other European countries.

Created: 7:50 AM 7/25/2025
Last updated: 7:50 AM 7/25/2025