THE OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITES OF THE IRGUN ZVAI LEUMI

Created: 10/23/1944

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DATE: S

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EE OOJECTXVS&'AIJD ACTIVITIES OF TIBS IRffUff 2VAI Ifft&X

of the time and actions of thovairiih

ruforonoo tc ite:la illocal Jstv ion and anfci-

exs its position iti ition to tho

tho re/.eutino Jerri ah comrar-iity#

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ota fa jjna&dafteS by law.

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Zrgtmis on urilergrourjd, quasi military orgsaiscticii with, hoadquartoro in Pa?.eetinoancheo in Poland and other Guror>ean oountyiec8 Its uaribors euroioniote sho wish to oenverfc PaJen-tino ad Tranejordan into an indocundont Jeuidi efcito and who odvooato the res of fcrosinatobe end tho 3sritiah to achieve thisolitical &ocln In oho pact tto Irgun waa rouponalbla for organising Allogal JorrAoh im&cratLon into Xt has cor-duetsd dincc jobmary of thio year poriodio raids on goTormont buildingorotasi agalnat thohito Paper Irmtn activities hav? been ocadaracd by tho rest of thoJsnich cassmity asnd hm-nful to thood0

HP. CDJTCTTYSS ACT? ACTIVITIESg PWB

1, The liaturo of tha ucoloty. Tba Irguc Zvoi Launl (rational tlilitary Organization) ie anoraoilitary soolety la Paleetino, conpooed of. fJuatio.il Zioniatiwho deslro tot'nd Ti^ajordon into on indepaadsnt Jewish State andedrooate the use- of foroe both againstArabs ard tho British to ftohiGws tils amino! political Kecoatly those ootiviata heve beoone obsessed with tha Idea that Britain has failed to carry out its piodgo io tha Jews cor.ta.ixcd in tho Balfour Declarationime whso Kit-opaan Jena, nmrdered and poi-oeouted by tho Voz1b0 havo boon In groatsst noodavon of rofuRO and that violence is tho only nay to porouado the aGadattory pcovor to change its preoont restrictive policy. Al-Hmdfthe Zrsin tras orictealJyarwo aa the military am of thaj^wvlsionlat Party inIt has gradually boo cm independent of tho letter's controla nevertheless the Xrgnn recruits are drtrsn otioseoluslvely frccn tang tho Seviolonists, Moreover j, Bitar, tho ri^idly-disoiplinod Revisionist youth novoment,o-military training for potential Xrgun nambors. In foot, Xrgun aaabsrs aro ablo to conceal their nith the seorot society by OBSunlng active roles either in fcho

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Party or in Bitar, Thus* for example, Eri^Jabotlnaty, aa head af trM^feiiar Imigrationo* able to da rootTcanisation of illegal Inraicration into Palestine,* Although Irgun head-quartoro aro In. Paleatinotf branches of the eooioty wore established in pro-war doyo in Poland and other European countries, tno Palootine unit hua

|a Baaodeport froa tho files of the Palestine Criminal Invoeticatlon

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tended to fluotuato in alto and at present hasonbors,ofsre well-oduoatoil and idealistic and would not nornallr have ongagod In orininal pursuits,

2. Irgun ob'sctlvou. Tlio nertbors of Irgun aro porsuaded that only by tbe use of violence can tha society realise its ultioato objectivei the "liberation" of Pmlostino (inoludiag TranaJordan) fran the "foroign oppressors" and its ostablishnont ae the national state of the Jewish people. nnodlate alms havo boon adjusted to tho changinglationa between the Pa lost las Jews on tlie one hand and tho mandatory governaont and tlie Palostlne Arabs respectively on tho other. At tho time ofrootion in the early nonths of the Palestine Arab'ha primary function of the rocloty WU to retaliate for ths nurdor of Jeas by Arabs.- Ao the Jewish position in east-Central Europe began to deteriorate rapidly in the final norths of peace and the mandatory govormont lrttroduoed severe restrictions on Jewish imigration into Palestine, tho Irgun undertook to organize illegal Jewish ontrance into the oountry. resorting to force nnen necessary. The Irgun becono vohonently ooti-Drltioh after tho sppoaranoo oflto laper, which was interpretedanceesion to Arab violonoa. ruco nas doolarod imodiatoly upon tho outbreak of war, when the society offerod its serviou to aseiat Britain against the oonnon onanr/. In feot, it oooperatod closely with tho British lliddlo East allitnry forces in tho early part of tlie nar, particularly in tho Iraqi and Syrian can--poigns of Irgun loaders beoono disillusioned, however, as tho

1. "Illicit AmingArabs and Jews in0.

irraigrttion deadline provided iu9 Vihite Paper approached. Tho mandatory power was turned early4 tliat theeclared at tha beginning of the tot" hod been "disregarded by tho Britishnsnt" end liad, thereforo, boon terainatod, Tho Irgun accordingly enbarkedrograa of Tlolonoe directed againot tlio British,iew to intimidating tho govorrraantal auttioritdoo Into abrogating tho TJhlte Paper,1 art In illegal iawigratlon. ae precise volune of illegal immigration io inpoBBibla to determine,, Tbs* Palestine Govornaent0 hocevor*has registered close0 illicit entrants eincohahaining majority having arrived During the past three and onoshalf yoaro illegal irrrlgration has all but dieappoaredesult of the tightonod milltary-civilion frontier controls, the breakdown offacilities fron Europe to Palestine, and, nest recently, thoittanee' of allave euccoedod in osoaping frora'Bazi-occupied Europo into Turkey, On tho other hand, largo nuobere of Jaws entered tho country unlawfully beforo9 and not all of the Ulioit settlers after that da to have boon recorded0 It nay be estimated that as many0 illegal inraigrants probably roached Paleatino Binoo the formation of Irgun There is no oay of calculating tho percentage of those uho have entered tho country under Irgun auspices, although it may bop*oauaod that the society waa rosponcibloubstantial snore of tho total. The organisation of illegal Imigration proved toucrative vonturo, since in addition to charging tho prospeotlvo innlgrento what tho traffio vould boar, Irgun raproscntatlvos in the CTS and olaewharo

funds for tho support of their "humanitarian" undortaklns*

Theso funds havo largely boon used to train and equip with arms the moobors of tho sooiefcy and to defray ttiaof terrorist aotivitioc.1

Orr.^ottt Tlolonne during tlie past yeare After baring rafrained froa tho uso of violonoe for nore than four yeoro of mr, tlie Irgun hao

conducted slnoo Fobruary of this year periodic raids on govarnneat bail dingorotest against the British nhito Paper policy. hasis has boon placed on tha destruction of property by toe uso of iand-ainoo and benbaj efforts have usually boon node to avert tho shedding of blood, but in moot of the foraya thoro have beon polioo and constabulary casuaXtias, Arab and Jtrnlsh as well as British. Irsun loaders with the bravado of the foracr Arab robel cc-awmdoro "proudly" assumed roeponsibiiity for theso terrorist oo&lritiea, usually by tha distribution of illegal broadshootd0 The follow-ingist of Irgun terrorist nsploits during tho past nine nonthsi

aD The offices of tho Paloctino Dopartriont of Migration at Jeruoalea, Tol-Avivc and Haifa Tiers partially doatroyed by bcraba on tho night ofebruary. The only casualtyonstable nho suffered front slioc-Ie,8

b. The government revenue offiooa in tho sano throe olties were blown up by mines on the night ofFebruary* no caoualties were reported,2

o. The headquarters of tho polios and the Crininalarfexmt In Jeruealea, Jaffa, and Uaifa aero seriously damaged by

1, The Irsun aroatedta em fund-raising body In Palestine,jaslt lyofllJjogjoh fronthich atteapta to collooVlunda"by'Tiffbfvfc"'if violonoe if ordinary oolioitatlon proves inaffootivef.nd,

XIp. 5-

forplo&LvoE cm tbe night ofltroh. Casualties wore roportod at Joru-salon and Haifa**

d. Tlio palootine Itroadoasting iierlvoo fcranrsiesion etation at Hamllah vma setsod on the night ofnyj tho attempt to oato uoe of tho etation was foiled, but ooroo danogo was done to the equlpnwnt.2

o. In tho earlyours ofuilding occupied by the govern iont land registry offices and the Jerus&ian district pclieo au thoroughly denolishod. Irreplaeoablo files core destroyed and aevoral ouualties wore

f The Jaffa divisional pel loo hoadquarterc and two police stations oa theboundorloe wore attacked with bcabs and gunfire on tlie night ofugust, pooultitigumber of oasualtioe .*

q, Polios statioDB at Bayt Da Jan, Qnlqllyah, Qatrah, and Haifaitation) wore afctaclMd on tho night ofeptomberi oovaral casualties wero reported.3

roaetlona in Palaatlao to Irgun violonoo. Tl*eof tho Irgun ha to been roundly emdoonad by then Palestine. An editorial inebruary)tho explosions in the Jiigratlon Department offices doubtlessoontL-sonts of the vast "njority of tho Palestine Jewish coE-umity. of this indopondont and liberal dally eansurod the perpetrators for

p..

It ,. 8.

,. 4. Palestine Post,. 3.

Bource S,nd JTA

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haraod tho oauae ofLuh peopleimo ahoa important doslsioztfj regarding Zionism were pending In London and .iaahingtoo. The Jcwieh cosnunity waa urged to exort greater efforts to curb theand to eliminate the terrorists, who ore proparod "to bridge ovor all too lightly tba gap between political debates and nurder." Following tho dostruotion of tho Land Registry officao in Jerusalem on Id Ally, tha^ftlastino, the largaat Zionist daily in the country, had tho following to say: "For thocriminals there

ia nothing but public condemnation. They aro young fanatics, eratod by

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ths oufferingc of their people, into belieriiig that destruction Bill bring healing."

tho affiliation of thsj&ebrcCT Ccmaittoo^of national, Ubcration^ (nCoX) with tho Irgun bsccao publicly known in Palestine in May, further oditorial ooraaente wore forthcoming. At thatho daily organ of thoomer ha-Sa'ir (Tho Youngtrossod tho foot that tho Irgua'e activities both in Palestine and in the US betrayed all tho ugly symptoms of faeoitt. In Paleatino, Irgun members ha<re boon IcUling British and Jewish polioe from ombuah, in order to nrivo out tlie conquerorej" Inhey havo helped to, deferolution of tho political problems of Paloatino. Tlie/terrorist acts in Paloatino and thejpolitical mookary in thenamed Iiiehnara woresymptoaaalignant disease, Tlie only remody was to do orrery-thing aoncoivable to isolate tho Irgun and ths novamont which produoed it. Revisionism.

Hot! si oriels havo purelyx miliox-uUvlooOr tosrs Vitesse. AlStoi^v- observes tliotho youtlv rfcc createdroT up ond nro cduected ir.thln the. Jovioh nalloncliot -lovontnt *r. Palestine tlioy liavo conductedVioriean :ativ:.tlos fron tho start ontiroly an their own. Unco fiiei? earlier oyxiitioos1 had proclaimed pogitiva objectives, tlioy ccr-ited our imltf.gatod support,1* 'llw onlisfciont of specially aooroditodot roquirod for tho purposo of routing public opinion to tho ur;;entfor Bc.ving tlio -uroponn Jooioh rasssos. Tho nowor; on to pointdoes cot do servocauio aooordi'r; to UC'.IL ideologynra nation oonsiots oiOyi iMootino Jca, the ctr.tolcosJotju, uwi llioao Jon ttbcw-jh -roluntoriry to .JoinWL. All other Jews, in thof tho WJiif tho countriea in tfilch clioy live; o not Jngllx'iAnorioan Jews, butiiglioliMon or Araerlonno. Tho 1CM, namartOTg hasat ito solor tho duration wil* bo ticof Jan. For uiiot roecon it ims "poctpocod*1 f tho pc lit'.col androblems of la-lostine untiloIn totioorganisers of tho RTX have re! ulta"jotuudy'c stand"in favor of that ofilleo rooogeize tho politicalf tUo now #'oupaiovortholose Tooornondod oontiuuod ondorecaont of irr.Vs out to roi'oui ttrflgOKB Jews,

to nczoss ocxrltteoc nroi tho .oorioon Friendsooieh

c-lno, the Caxiiltso for on Arrry of Statolooa una ialostlr.ian<aralttoo t? savo tlio Jewish tooplo of Iiuropo, and WiosngMoroo raloatinoi rtao3X4.

Vlediiiir Jibotiivily, .Viher of founded tho noTrifcior.istl rogard* .ol-nnn, Sicnist ;residcr.t. as or. oppjrtunlst.

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