With the Judæans in the Palestine CampaignPatterson, J. H. (John Henry)
History
With the Judæans in the Palestine Campaign
Patterson, J. H. (John Henry)
World War, 1914-1918 -- Campaigns -- Palestine; World War, 1914-1918 -- Participation, Jewish
In case any readers may think that my account is exaggerated I give some
letters of protest which I received from some of the officers in my
battalion. From this it will be seen what a difficult position I was
placed in, owing to the policy of G.H.Q. towards Jewish aspirations.
A few interested parties, for their own ends, sedulously spread the
rumour that there was no anti-Semitism shown in Palestine. I will leave
the reader to judge whether these people were knaves or fools:
LUDD,
4-7-19,
A7/48.
SIR,
I beg to report that the men are discontented, not only in our
battalion, but also in the other Jewish units, which cannot fail
to influence our men still more.
The causes of their discontent are much deeper than delay of
Demobilization. Over 3/7ths of the Judæans in this country are
men who volunteered to serve in Palestine in the name of their
Zionist ideals, and in reply to the pledge embodied in the
declaration which Mr. Balfour, on behalf of H.M. Government,
issued on the 2nd November, 1917.
It is now a general impression among our soldiers, an impression
shared by the public opinion of Palestine, that this pledge has
been broken, so far as local authorities are concerned.
Palestine has become the theatre of an undisguised anti-Semitic
policy. Elementary equality of rights is denied the Jewish
inhabitants; the Holy City, where the Jews are by far the
largest community, has been handed over to a militantly
anti-Semitic municipality; violence against Jews is tolerated,
and whole districts are closed to them by threats of such
violence under the very eyes of the authorities; high officials,
guilty of acts which any Court would qualify as instigation to
anti-Jewish pogroms, not only go unpunished, but retain their
official positions. The Hebrew language is officially
disregarded and humiliated; anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism is
the fashionable attitude among officials who take their cue from
superior authority; and honest attempts to come to an agreement
with Arabs are being frustrated by such means as penalising
those Arab notables who betray pro-Jewish feeling.
The Jewish soldier is treated as an outcast. The hard and honest
work of our battalions is recompensed by scorn and slander,
which, starting from centres of high authority, have now reached
the rank and file, and envenomed the relations between Jewish
and English soldiers. When there is a danger of anti-Jewish
excesses, Jewish soldiers are removed from the threatened areas
and employed on fatigues, and not even granted the right to
defend their own flesh and blood.
Passover was selected to insult their deepest religious
feelings, by barring them access to the Wailing Wall during that
week. No Jewish detachment is allowed to be stationed in
Jerusalem or any of the other Holy Cities of Jewry.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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