Evening star., 1948-05-09
100 Left of 10000
WHO Inhabited Port
Until 2Weeks Ago
By Doniel De Luce
Assoeiotsd Press Foreign Correspondent

<Ssocioieo FfeSS Foret9n correspondent
JAFFA, Palestine, May 8.-Jaffa,
the largest Arab city in Palestine a
few days ago. now is a, forsaken
hostage of the Jewish State.
II 1t were not for British tanks
and artillery-all due to leave next
Saturday. corporals guard of
Jews could march through Jaffa to-
day without firing a shot.
Sandbagged Arab gunposts are
deserted. Fewer than 100 Arab
civilians are to be seen daZedly wan
dering in the streets. They are the
hungry, impoverished remnants of
a population which numbered go
900 until two weeks ago.
The Jews control the territory
around Jaffa to depth of 10 miles
No Arab vehicles can enter or leave
the city without passing within
close range of Jewish machineguns
and mortars.
A few score Arab refugees are
boarding two small coastal sailing
vessels in the ancient harbors, the
last of an Arab exodus unequalled
in the modern history of the Holy
| Land.
70 Arab Looters Shot.
Along docks, where once LebaneSe
cedar was brought to build Solo
mons Temple, $10,000,000 worth of
| foreign imports are under guard of
Royal Irish Fusiliers. They have
shot % Arab looters in the past
two nights.
Six warehouses protected by the
Fusiliers are jammed with every
thing from Australian butter and
English chocolate to American elec-
trio refrigerators and German SYM
phonic records. Where looters have
broken in cases of food lie spilled in
insane waste, their contents tram
pied into the dirty Placement.
Jaffa's remaining inhabitants, who
now scarcely exceed 1000, are on
the verge OF starvation. At the
French hospital on Jafa Hill Cath
olic sisters are caring for the sick,
wounded and orphans. Nowhere
else in the city is there any public
relief for victims of the undeclared
war.
The French nuns have been the
only people with CUTS enough to
stay and carry on" the Fusiliers
officer declared. We've sent them
some food from the warehouses
without bothering about paper for
malities."
Typifies Arab Weakness.
Jaffa, even more than Haifa, typi-
fies Arab military weakness, unpre-
paredness and disunity.
British military observers say the
battle of Jaffa pitted 1000 COM
mando-trained Jews of Irgun Zvai
Leumi against $50 Iraq volunteers.
An internal Arab quarrel de-
veloped with Jaffa's mayor demand
ing the removal Of the Iraq COM
mander. Fawzi Bey al Kaukji.
Syrian chieftian of Arab volunteer
forces outside Jaffa, ordered the
commander to leave. He did, but
his men went with him.
To save the territorial status quo
until the end of the mandate next
Saturday the British intervened.
So in the end it was the British,
not the Arabs who kept the Jews
out of Jaffa temporarily.
Biding their time as far as the
city itself was concerned. the Jews
have mopped up Arab resistance
along the Jaffa Jerusalem highway
virtually to the LYDIA airfleld.
The LYDIA Airport, II miles SOUTH
east of Jaffa, is deserted. q. Arab
shepherds Craze their flocks along
the runways
Easy Prize for Jews.
The air center itself has been
looted. Idling Tommiess watched
from the control tower, but the
field, too, will be an easy prize for
the Jews when the British march
off next week.
Rumors that the Trans Jordan
Arab Legion would seize the field
for an Egyptian air base appear
to be fantastic.
Motoring across Arab populated
Palestine from the Jordan River to
Jaffa I have seen no signs that
the Arabs retain any military
punch. Most Arab roadblocks now
are unguarded. The few Arabs still
seen carrying arms look to be un-
happy members of home defense
units.
In the fields Arab peasants are