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Fred Kisch, Head of the Palestine Zionist Declaration, was happy to contribute to their
Executive (PZE), accompanied Amery when he campaign and played a small part together with
visited Palestine in 1925 and reported that he others, which led to the eventual reduction of the
(Amery) had a deep knowledge of what was damage which the White Paper would have
going on in the country. In a speech to the Va'ad caused.
Leumi, Amery began by saying that while he Once again Weizmann turned to Amery in May
accepted that special provisions needed to be 1939 when he was a member of the pro-
made for the Jews to provide for their cultural Palestine Committee in the Commons,
and social needs, it was important that nothing Weizmann asked him to lead a delegation to
should be done to prejudice the needs of the pressurize Colonial Secretary Malcolm
inhabitants of Palestine as a whole. The Jewish MacDonald in an effort to prevent the
National Home must exist side by side with the publication of the infamous White Paper of that
Arab national home, the whole forming a year that aimed at curtailing immigration into
Palestinian National entity. Palestine, which would have been the death
This was the Government line which he as sentence for refugees from Nazism.
Minister had to deliver. Kisch was somewhat On this occasion however, Amery and his group
unhappy with the first part of the message, but were unsuccessful in their attempt to change the
cheered up considerably when he heard the Government decision, but then so was
conclusion of the speech when Amery said: everybody else.
The Jewish National Home exists in Following Amery’s successful contribution to
Palestine by right and is quite independent of the creation of a Jewish legion in World War I,
whether the Arabs like it or not. Weizmann asked him once again during World
War II to intercede with the War Office over the
On another occasion in 1926 at an Imperial
Conference in London, Amery said: question of setting up a Jewish brigade. As
Churchill seemed to be in favour and as the
Palestine is a progressive, contented and Secretary of War, Isaac Hore Belisha, was a Jew,
prosperous little country. The Arab it seemed that the chances were good. However
population, despite the opposition the War Office opposed the proposal and
maintained by their political leaders, has Churchill was not willing to enter into a
come to realize that their fears of Jewish confrontation with his Generals. This was too
immigration have been unfounded and that big an issue for Amery to have achieved any
the influx of Jewish capital and Jewish success, but in any case, towards the end of the
settlers is benefiting them in the same War in 1944, such a Jewish brigade did emerge.
measure as the Jews themselves.
At the beginning of the War, Amery met Orde
When the Labour Government came into office Wingate who had achieved so much earlier
in 1929, Amery was replaced by the anti-Zionist success in Palestine and who had a fantasy of
Lord Passfield whose 1930 White Paper openly being the first commander of the Jewish
attacked Zionism and who set out to destroy the Brigade. Amery was personally very impressed
provisions of the Mandate agreement. Weizmann by him and his Zionism but Wingate was
immediately mounted a media campaign against temporarily out of favour with the military
this about-turn in Government policy and hierarchy and had been sidelined. Amery, who
approached all his influential friends including became Secretary of State for India in 1940, took
Amery to publicly oppose the White Paper. the case under his wing and, through his contacts
Amery, who had been intimately involved in the with Wavell, was able to arrange for Wingate to
serve in Abyssinia and Burma.
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