BRITAIN IN PALESTINE
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The major effect of World War II on the situation in Palestine was the pressure to step up Jewish immigration, caused by the Nazi persecution of the Jews. Using the sympathy of the world for victims of the Holocaust, Zionists demanded that Palestine be used as a safe haven, even though many surviving Jews wanted to go to America, Canada or Britain. Illegal immigration increased and Britain was equated with the Nazis for turning away boatloads of immigrants who had no permits and were outside the official quota. American Jews were in the forefront of protests, and encouraged the growth of Jewish resistance to the British administration in Palestine.
World War II
“If I knew that it was possible to save all the Jewish children of Germany by transporting them to England, and only half by transferring them to the Land of Israel, I would choose the latter, for before us lies not only the numbers of these children but the historical reckoning of the people of Israel.”
– David Ben Gurion
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Once again, Germany and its allies were pitted against Britain and its allies. From 1940 Winston Churchill, a staunch Zionist, was Prime Minister of Britain, and the Zionists working against the White Paper had a sympathetic ear.
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