867N.01/1372
The Ambassador in Poland (Biddle) to the Secretary of State
[Received January 12, 1939.]
Sir: I have the honor to refer to my cable No. 149 of August 18, 2 p.m.,18 and to report the following observations on the existence of a branch of the Jewish national military organization, “Irgun Civae Leumi”.
For background, this organization, bearing illegal status, was established the latter part of 1929. The organization, with headquarters in [Page 1001] Palestine, now has branches in nearly all Jewish communities abroad. Moreover, the organization is an offshoot of, and collaborates with, the Zionist Revisionists.
According to the Chief of I. C. L.’s branch in Poland, the aim of this terrorist organization is to prevent, with the assistance of its intelligence service and the effective force of its membership, the occupation of Palestine prepared by the Arabs. I. C. L. is not in competition with “Hagana” (Jewish militia) since the former bears no character of self-defense—rather it is meant to serve as an instrument of national force. In fact, the Chief of the Polish branch describes I. C. L. as an independent military organization which aims to live alongside the militia, which is engaged mainly in police work. All Jews may join, but must assume an obligation not only to defend the lives and property of the Jewish colonies, but also to take an oath that they will fight for the honor and for the establishment of a Jewish state. After three years of educational work in Palestine, the organization began its work outside Palestine. It arranged for the purchase of modern arms. Moreover, a military textbook is now being written under its auspices.
The organizer and active Chief (to whom I above referred) of the Polish branch is a Mr. Strassman, son of the well-to-do proprietor of a business house known locally as “Asko”. He is an energetic young man and assumes the attitude that the Jews should understand that when they are not wanted in a given place they must establish their own national home. According to his own words, Strassman would prefer a tent in Palestine to a flat in Warsaw. Moreover, characterizing the attitude of the Zionist Revisionists, whereof he is the recognized permanent leading authority in Poland, he contends that the Jews should assume responsibility for the emigration of the Jews to Palestine, adding that it is only up to them to decide whether they prefer to suffer the hardships of pioneering in Palestine or the grim outlook in European countries where they are now situated.
In further describing the Polish branch of the I. C. L. Strassman points out that in view of the illegal character of the organization the details concerning it cannot be published in the press. However, commencing with September last the organization here has issued a bi-monthly magazine written in the Polish language and entitled Jerusalem Liberated. This magazine enjoys a circulation of 3,000. Moreover, the same magazine, printed in the Yiddish language under the name of Dietat (The Deed) enjoys a circulation of 13,000. The editorial staff engaged in the publication of this magazine are all ideologists and receive no remuneration for their services.
In reviewing the editions which have appeared since September, I made note in effect of the following enlightening excerpts. One editorial states that “Only Jewish blood should be shed for the defense [Page 1002] of the Jewish cause.” The article continues to the effect that altogether there were no more than 4,000 Arab terrorists in the Palestine district. They were badly financed and possessed only primitive military equipment. Moreover, they were lacking in military training and in leadership—and many of them were mercenaries. Already there were many victims of Jewish counter-terrorism which had terrified the civilian Arab population.
Hence the suppression of the Arab terror was quite possible, but called for serious efforts, time and patience. The only method and the only road towards that end was planned, systematic combat, carried out by a Jewish armed force. This editorial ends, as in the case of a number of other like writings, to the effect that the Jews might have been beaten in Germany and Austria, but in Palestine the Jews refuse to be beaten.
From the foregoing it is apparent that the Zionist Revisionist Organization and its offshoot, the Polish branch of the I. C. L., are bent upon (a) stiffening the backbone of the Jews in Poland, (b) inciting the Jews to throw their weight behind an appeal to the British Government to open the gates for larger-scale immigration into Palestine, and (c) inciting the Jewish community here to a desire to emigrate from Poland to Palestine.
It is pertinent to state at this point that in my recent conversations with several of the Zionist Revisionist leaders here they stated that in their envisaged program of coordinating Jewish and governmental efforts to bring about large-scale emigration to Palestine, they would require less of Minister Beck than of any other Minister in the Polish Government since, after his outburst of last year in Geneva wherein he pled for international attention to the Jewish problem in Poland, they feared that the British might accuse Beck of being primarily interested in getting rid of the Jews rather than being interested in their welfare. They added their opinion that Beck had been the only one to take his hands out of his pockets and manifest a genuine and effective interest in the Jews’ difficulties. They were deeply appreciative of the rôle he had assumed, but now they did not want either to embarrass him nor hurt their own cause.
Respectfully yours,
- Not printed.↩