From: arens@ISI.EDU (Yigal Arens)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.mideast
Subject: Re: Radio Host Fired After Jewish Prote
Date: 25 Jul 92 01:09:30 GMT
Organization: USC/Information Sciences Institute
In-reply-to: dzk@cs.brown.edu's message of 24 Jul 92 20:09:47 GMT

In article <1992Jul24.200947.24456@cs.brown.edu> dzk@cs.brown.edu (Danny Keren) writes:
>
> b) I remember reading the exact letter sent from Lehi to some Nazi official
>    regarding this cooperation. It specificaly mentioned that the cooperation
>    would involve moving the Jewish population of Europe to Palestine. One
>    has also to remember that the nature of the Nazi genocide *was not* yet
>    known, and, in fact, in 1941 (perhaps somewhat can get the exact date
>    of the letter) there wasn't yet an organized extermination program
>    around; the death camps weren't built yet, and there was hardly a clue
>    as to what the Nazis were pursuing. It was definitly known that they
>    were rabid antisemites, and word of scttered massacres was proabably
>    getting around, but the extent and methods of the mass murder were not
>    applied yet.
>
>    If one does not look at this in a cynical way, it can definitly be
>    interpreted as an attempt to get the Jews of Europe out of there and
>    into Palestine.

I hope that reposting the material I have on the subject will finally
put an end to these desparate attempts to put a positive "spin" on
Shamir's crazy and fascist scheme.

Ha'aretz, February 4, 1983.  By B. Michael.

[LEHI (Hebrew acronym for Fighters for the Freedom of Israel) was one of the
three Jewish underground organizations in Palestine.  It was formed
following a split in ETZEL (the organization headed then by Begin).  One of
its leaders during the period described below is current Israeli Foreign
Minister Yitzhak Shamir.  Both ETZEL and LEHI were often referred to as
fascist by the labor organized third underground, the Haganah.  At one time
Haganah members would capture members of ETZEL and LEHI and turn them over
to the British. --  YA]


	A Document on a Trite Subject
	==============================

Much has already been written and said about the sad and shameful attempts
of LEHI to establish contacts with Nazi Germany.  I believe that the German
side of the matter has not yet been publicized.  Deep in the pile of
documents that I collect compulsively there is one that presents these
contacts from the Nazi perspective.  An interesting document.

It has become of interest once again as a result of statements by Foreign
Minister Yitzhak Shamir, one of the best known leaders of LEHI, concerning
the Avneri-Peled-Arnon-Arafat meeting.  And there is indeed no comparison,
because I am not Begin and I don't consider every enemy a "Nazi".

And there is certainly no comparison because of the date.  1941.  The
Nurenberg laws are already in force.  The yellow star has been forced upon
the Jews of Poland, Holland, and if I am not mistaken also France.  Burning
synagogues are a daily occurrence.  The murder of Jews is no longer a
secret.  And nevertheless LEHI establishes contacts with the Germans.

Here is the story as it was seen from the German side:

On January 21, 1941, a very interesting document was sent from Ankara
in Turkey.  It was sent by Franz von Papen, then Nazi Germany's
ambassador to Turkey, to the Nazi Foreign Office in Berlin.

The document in question was classified as "secret", and its identifying
number is E234151-8.

To this document Ambassador von Papen attached another document, also
classified as "secret", which included an intelligence report from the Naval
Attache, who resided in Istanbul.  This intelligence report was written on
January 11, 1941, and is stamped with the official seal of the Nazi embassy
in Turkey, which asserts that it was received on January 18, 1941.  [A
photocopy of the document was in the paper -- YA].

The intelligence report included three sections.  Two of them are not of
interest to us now.  Section 3, on the other hand, is very interesting.  And
so writes a German officer to Ambassador von Papen:

       "Dear Honorable Mr. Ambassador!
	Attached to this letter you will find the following:
	1. ....
	2. ....
	3. A proposal of the National Military Organization in Palestine for
	   a solution to the Jewish problem in Europe.

			With my allegiance,
			I am yours,
				( -- )"

(In order to prevent any mistake, it should be noted that despite the fact
that throughout the letter the German intelligence officer refers to the
National Military Organization [ETZEL's full name -- YA], and even
transliterates the words "Irgun Tzva'i Le'umi" in German, he actually means
LEHI, and not ETZEL.  In its early days this group was called "The National
Military Organization in the Land of Israel", and the name LEHI was born
later).

And when we arrive at the detailed report on section 3, we read as follows:

       "Guidelines for the proposal of the National Military Organization in
	Palestine, concerning the solution of the Jewish question in Europe,
	AND THE ACTIVE PARTICIPATION OF THE NATIONAL MILITARY ORGANIZATION
	IN THE WAR ON THE SIDE OF GERMANY (My emphasis, B.M.).

       "... The National Military Organization, being aware of the positive
	approach of the Reich's government to Zionist activity inside
	Germany, and to the Zionist emigration plans, believes that:

       "1. A common interest is possible between the establishment of a new
	   order in Europe according to the German conception, and the
	   national aspirations of the Jewish people, as expressed by the
	   National Military Organization.

       "2. Cooperation is possible in the future between the New Germany and
	   a New Hebrew National Entity.  (In German -- Voelkisch-Nationalen)

       "3. The establishment of the historical Jewish state on a national
	   and totalitarian basis, which will maintain contacts with the
	   German Reich, is a German interest, for strengthening and
	   protecting the German power posts which will be established in
	   the near future in the Near East.

       "Based on these points, and under the condition that the government
	of the German Reich recognize the national claims mentioned above,
	the National Military Organization offers to take an active part in
	the war on the side of Germany.

       " ...

       "Cooperation with the Israeli liberation movement is also in
	accordance with one of the latest speeches of the
	Reichskantsler[sp?], in which Mr. Hitler emphasized that he will use
	any combination and any coalition in order to isolate the British
	and beat them..."

Later in the document its author describes historical landmarks on the path
of this National Military Organization, tells of its start in the
Revisionist Zionist movement, its ties with "Herr Z. Jabotinsky", and the
split that was caused by "the pro-English stance of the Revisionist movement
in Palestine" (and from this it is clear that it is LEHI that is being
referred to and not ETZEL).

Into this historical summary enter a few enlightening statements that
demonstrate a surprising familiarity with the affairs of the Jewish
settlement in Palestine, and with some interesting traits of that
"organization".  For example:

       "As opposed to other Zionist movements, the National Military
	Organization does not accept the notion that the homeland can only
	be taken over by slow and clandestine colonization.  The
	Organization believes that `war and sacrifice' are the only
	instruments for the occupation and liberation of Palestine"...

Or,

       "The National Military Organization is ideologically and structurally
	very close to the totalitarian movements in Europe"...

These were choice parts of the Nazi document.  I believe it limits somewhat
the right of the Foreign Minister to criticize contacts with controversial
elements, or divergence from the national consensus, or not accepting
democratic principles.
--
Yigal Arens   "He seems like an average type of man.  He's not, like, smart.
USC/ISI        I'm not trying to bag on him or anything, but he has the same
arens@isi.edu  mentality I have -- and I'm in the eighth grade."     Vanessa
               Martinez, after VP Quayle's visit to her school-LA Times 5/21
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