Operation Oasis
The operation Oasis was a British operation to illegal immigrants from Palestine to return to the European countries of their departure. The first and only action was the repatriation of the passengers of the Exodus . The refusal of the passengers to disembark in France and the decision by the British government to intern the Exodus passengers in Germany gave the operation an unforeseen political dimension that had significant implications for the end of the British mandate in Palestine and the State of Israel was founded.
prehistory
The British White Paper of 1939 very drastically limited the legal immigration of Jews into Palestine; it was one of the triggers of the illegal immigration known as Aliyah Bet. Due to the Second World War , this almost came to a standstill between 1940 and 1945, but revived increasingly after the end of the war. The escape of European Jews and illegal immigration to Palestine were organized by various Jewish organizations such as the Jewish Agency , Mossad le Alija Bet , Hagana and the Palmach with its subgroup Palyam . Thanks to strong financial support, mainly from American Jews, it could be carried out on a large scale.
The British mandate administration tried at great expense to prevent illegal immigration. Detained refugees were therefore detained in internment camps , mainly in Atlit . The situation in the internment camps in Palestine was also tense, as numerous citizens of the mandate area were arrested and were imprisoned in the camps due to the clashes between the British mandate power, Jewish and Arab groups (see e.g. Operation Agatha ). In order to ease the situation in Palestine and in the hope of curbing the flow of refugee ships across the Mediterranean , the government declaration on the deportation of illegal immigrants to Cyprus in 1946 decided to imprison the refugees in Cyprus . Contrary to expectations, this action called " Operation Igloo " had no impact on the flow of refugees. Instead, very large refugee ships with space for well over 1000 passengers were increasingly used, which further increased the number of immigrants. The situation in the internment camps in Cyprus was therefore increasingly tense.
Since the La Spezia affair , British mandate and Jewish policy has been watched with increased attention by the world public.
Operation Oasis
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Operation Oasis, the repatriation of illegal immigrants to the country of their departure, was intended to defuse the unsustainable camp situation in Cyprus. At the same time, the British administration hoped for an additional deterrent effect and thus finally the hoped-for effect on the flow of refugees. The first and ultimately only refugee ship affected by Operation Oasis was the Exodus .
Return to Europe
In the early morning hours of July 18, 1947, the Exodus was raised by the British about 20 km from Gaza and taken to Haifa . Operation Oasis began on the same day with the transfer of the passengers from the Exodus to the three deportation ships Ocean Vigor , Runnymede Park and Empire Rival . Although far fewer passengers were accommodated on the deportation ships than on the Exodus , it was also extremely crowded. Many passengers did not have a bed and slept on the floor. The Jews expected to be taken to internment camps in Cyprus, like the passengers on the previous refugee ships. Rumors about an upcoming return transport to France caused increasing unrest among the passengers. When the destination of the journey became certain, the Jews vented with loud indignation.
On July 29, the ships reached Port-de-Bouc . The British planned to force the refugees off the ships, while the French government intervened. An attempt was made to persuade the Jews to voluntarily disembark by deliberately worsening the conditions on board during the heat wave that was prevailing at the time. At the same time, the French government lured people with asylum , which meant freedom and work. The British ships were not allowed to anchor indefinitely in French waters; therefore, on August 21, Communique No. 127 set an ultimatum :
“It being obviously impossible for three British transport ships to anchor for an indefinite period in French inshore waters, it has been decided that if the Jews do not begin to disembark before 6 pm [British Summer Time] on 22nd August, the ships will sail to the British Zone in Germany, where the passengers will be immediately disembarked. This is the only territory under British jurisdiction, excluding Cyprus and Palestine, in which such a large number of people may be adequately accommodated and cared for within a reasonable amount of time. "
" Since it is apparently impossible for three British transport ships to anchor indefinitely in French coastal waters, it was decided that unless the Jews begin disembarking before 6pm (British summer time) on August 22, the ships should be disembarked after the Continue to the British zone in Germany, where the passengers are immediately disembarked. This is the only territory under British jurisdiction outside of Cyprus and Palestine in which such a large number of people can be adequately accommodated and cared for in a reasonable amount of time. "
But even this threat did not induce many Jews to leave the ships. They countered with a one-day hunger strike and the slogan “Either the land of Israel or death on the ships” . After the deadline, only 130 (other sources mention 60 and 103 respectively), predominantly old and frail people, had accepted the offer of asylum and left the ships. On the evening of August 22nd, the ships lifted anchor heading Hamburg . In Gibraltar the journey was interrupted on August 25th, because the British parliament wanted to discuss the decision to intern the Jews in the British occupation zone of Germany again due to pressure from the international media . After five days of deliberation, the decision was confirmed and the ships ordered to continue their journey.
On the morning of September 8th, the ships reached the port of Hamburg accompanied by three destroyers and several speedboats. One ship after the other landed - probably - at the Petersenkai at shed 29, which was largely sealed off with barbed wire barriers. Nevertheless, the arrival of the ships was observed by around two hundred journalists who reported to newspapers around the world. The partly violent evacuation of the ships Ocean Vigor and Runnymede Park by nearly a thousand British soldiers, which seriously injured 24 refugees, fueled horror at the brutality with which the British enforced their policy. The appearance of the refugees, most of whom had been through the extreme conditions on board the various ships for 59 days, complemented the effect.
To everyone's surprise, all passengers on the Empire Rival left the ship voluntarily. During a subsequent search of the ship, a bomb with a time fuse was discovered, which had apparently already been smuggled on board in France. This was supposed to destroy the deportation ship after the evacuation. The bomb was taken to nearby naval barracks; but the time fuse triggered the detonation before the ordnance disposal service arrived.
In solidarity demonstrated 4,000 residents of the DP -Lagers Belsen-Hohne against the ousting of Exodus -Juden in Hamburg. 400 other camp residents from Belsen-Hohne traveled to Hamburg and tried to get to the locked Petersenkai, where they were prevented by the German police.
The Jews were brought into railroad cars that had previously been used as troop transports; music was broadcast over loudspeaker systems. The empty wagons with barred windows and the accompanying music often evoked memories of the deportation of Jews in the Third Reich and their arrival in various concentration camps . The Jews were transported to Lübeck-Kücknitz by train. In the train station there, which was sealed off with barbed wire fences like the Petersenkai, the refugees had to transfer to trucks and were transported to the two camps in Pöppendorf and Am Stau.
The media response was split in two. While British media and newspapers under British influence emphasized the restraint, fairness and humanity of British soldiers and the violent resistance of the Jews, numerous other journalists reported on the brutal actions of British soldiers, the multiple passive resistance of the Jews and the parallels between British behavior and Incidents in National Socialism. American journalists also collected signatures for a protest telegram to President Truman . From the British side, the critical reporting media were accused of targeted anti-British agitation.
Camp Pöppendorf and Am Stau
The Pöppendorf camp in the Waldhusener Forest was 800 m from the Kücknitz train station, on the road from the Waldhusen forest house to Pöppendorf. The camp was established in July 1945 as an internment camp for members of the armed forces . From November 1945 it was then used as a transit camp for German refugees from the eastern regions. With a total of over 500,000 refugees from the east during the existence of the camp, Pöppendorf was the largest camp in Schleswig-Holstein .
The Am Stau camp was a former SS and forced labor camp on Herreninsel , which was used for Polish displaced persons in the summer of 1947.
On August 19, three days before the three deportation ships left Port-de-Bouc or two days before the ultimatum was issued, preparations were initiated to prepare the two camps to accommodate the Jewish refugees. The camp inmates were distributed to other DP camps, and British pioneers surrounded the camps with double barbed wire fences and watchtowers with floodlights. In addition to the camp barracks and huts, additional tents were set up. The Lübeck Senate protested unsuccessfully on 23 August against the additional burden on the city overcrowded with refugees.
On the evening of September 9th, 4,319 of the original 4,554 Exodus Jews were quartered in the two camps. The UN organization IRO offered them the status of Displaced Persons, which would have meant a better food supply. But the offer was turned down, as this was seen as giving up the status of emigrant to Palestine. The Jews organized demonstrations in the camps to show that they still wanted to travel to Palestine. Unnoticed by the British camp administration, Hagana contact persons were smuggled into the camps, who maintained contact with the Jewish Central Committee in Belsen. One of these contact persons, Benjamin Gruszka, was even used as an interpreter by the camp management. During the translation, he included small pieces of information that made it clear to the Jews which instructions from the camp administration they should not obey. In this way, the resistance could be coordinated, unnoticed by the British. One means of resistance was the denial of personal information such as name, age and origin. As a result, the British ultimately failed in their attempt to register the Exodus Jews.
On September 15, a Jewish camp committee was elected under the leadership of Mordechai Rosmann. The committee was on the one hand the point of contact for the camp administration and camp personnel, on the other hand the organizer for protest demonstrations against the British that took place almost daily. Under the leadership of the committee, life in the camps was more and more organized by the Jews themselves, including medical care, kindergarten, school education for children and adults as well as cultural activities such as cinema, music and a camp newspaper of their own. On September 25, the offer made by the French government in Port-de-Bouc to accept the Jews in France was renewed. The offer was linked to the promise of a significantly improved food supply (2800 kcal per day); In addition, the regular food supply for the camp inmates was reduced to 1500 kcal per day on October 1st. Nevertheless, this offer of free travel to France was not accepted.
After all attempts to register the Exodus Jews had failed, this project was abandoned by the British. From the beginning of October, the watchtowers and searchlights were dismantled, which according to British representations were only intended for the duration of the registration. At the request of the Jewish committee, the double barbed wire fence was not dismantled, but was left to protect the camps. After several anti-Semitic statements by Lübeck citizens and officials and even in the local press, such a protective measure was felt to be necessary. On October 6th, the camp management was transferred to the committee and the British guards were completely withdrawn. The Jews were given new papers and the right to leave the camps. Only some of the camp residents made use of this option. Since the Pöppendorf and Am Stau camps with their simple huts and living tents were not winter-proof, the British administration ordered the residents to be relocated to Emden and Wilhelmshaven . The Jewish camp committee approved this arrangement. From November 2nd to 5th, 2342 residents of the Pöppendorf camp were transported by train to the former barracks in Emden, while the 1550 residents of the Am Stau camp were taken to the naval camp in Wilhelmshaven- Sengwarden . On November 5th, the last Exodus passengers were moved to the new accommodations. The Pöppendorf and Am Stau camps were then extensively renovated and were again available as transit camps for refugees from the east from November 17th. Pöppendorf was used as a refugee transit camp until the summer of 1950. Then the camp was demolished; Today only a memorial plaque in the Waldhusener Forest and the graves of the children who died in Pöppendorf in the Jewish cemetery in Lübeck-Moisling, 18 km southwest, remind of the camp. The site of the former camp is now a dense coniferous forest.
Emden and Sengwarden camps
The Exodus Jews were brought to Emden to the Karl von Müller barracks on Auricher Strasse and the former Wilhelmshaven-Sengwarden naval camp , today's Admiral Armin Zimmermann barracks . The Polish occupation troops quartered in the Emden barracks were relocated to other quarters. The journey from the Pöppendorf and Am Stau camps to Bad Schwartau station was again made with British military trucks, and from then on by rail. The refugees successfully protested against traveling under the guard of armed soldiers and in barred wagons. The guards were withdrawn and the wire barriers removed from the train windows. The space in the new accommodation was still very cramped; many had to sleep in twos in one bed. But with solid buildings, decent beds and central heating, the conditions were much better.
Jewish self-government continued in Emden and Sengwarden. The organization corresponded to that in the kibbutzim ; therefore the Jews called the Emden camp the “Ha Bokeja” kibbutz. The preparation for entry to Palestine, whether by legal or illegal means, was intensively promoted and actively supported by the Hagana. Since the British also allowed the spouses of legally admitted immigrants to enter Palestine, numerous marriages of convenience were concluded. On December 30, 1947 alone, nine weddings took place in the Emden camp. Many Exodus Jews also made it through Holland and Belgium to Marseille and on to Palestine with forged identity documents . There, the identity papers were passed on to the Hagana, who forged them and brought them back to Emden. On the refugee ships that were still heading for Palestine, the former Exodus passengers were given priority. By April 1948 there were only around 1,800 Exodus Jews in Emden and Sengwarden.
The camps in Emden and Sengwarden were not cordoned off; the residents could move freely in the cities. Due to the good supply situation for the Jews, which was often better than that of the German population, even these very free internment conditions did not lead to faster emigration. In some cases, close contacts were established with the neighboring German population through barter and black market trading as well as services. Jewish and German children and young people spent a lot of time together on the barracks grounds.
With the independence and establishment of the state of Israel on May 14, 1948, all restrictions on Jews ceased to exist. Nevertheless, it was still a long time before the Exodus passengers were able to travel to the country that was burdened by the War of Independence . The Emden and Sengwarden camps were evacuated from July 1948; the remaining residents were moved to other camps from which they could emigrate to Israel more quickly. Few Jews also emigrated to Sweden or the USA . The Emden and Sengwarden camps were closed in August 1948. This ended Operation Oasis, which had not been pursued since September 1947. The last official entry for Operation Oasis was from July 1948 and named the loss of 105 batons worth 255.38 Reichsmarks . The batons that the British had borrowed from the Hamburg police for the disembarkation of the Jews now had to be replaced.
Effects
With Operation Oasis, Great Britain received a disastrous response from the global public due to the insensitive and heartlessly strict bureaucracy and was in a very bad light. Even its closest ally, the US, increasingly distanced itself. The worldwide indignation led to an increasing sympathy for the future Jewish state, which also had an impact on the UNSCOP . In order to limit the foreign policy damage, Operation Oasis was discontinued and no more refugees were returned to Europe. However, this change of course in politics has not been publicly announced. The Mossad le Alija Bet therefore continued to fear deportation to Europe and ordered a change in the resistance strategy for the refugee ships to passive resistance. In addition to the feared return to Europe, this should also avoid further deaths and injuries. Nevertheless, there was already another one on the first refugee ship after the Exodus affair, the Af-Al-Pi-Chen (Hebrew for “nevertheless”, based on the Exodus affair and as an affirmation to continue illegal immigration) To mourn fatalities.
In order to cope with the mass of refugees, the British set up further internment camps in Cyprus. The burdens of internment, international criticism and isolation, and the continuing problems in Palestine intensified and accelerated the efforts of the British government to carry out the task of the mandate announced on February 14, 1947. Less than three months after the Exodus affair, the UN General Assembly decided that the mandate would end on May 14, 1948, and that Palestine would be divided into an Arab and a Jewish state.
literature
- Jan Henrik Fahlbusch u. a: Pöppendorf instead of Palestine. Forced residence of the passengers of the "Exodus 1947" in Lübeck. Documentation of an exhibition . Dölling and Galitz, Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-933374-29-4 .
Web links
- Pöppendorf instead of Palestine (PDF file; 6.53 MB)
- Operation Oasis ( Memento from April 20, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- Operation Oasis , British report from September 9, 1947
- Return to Europe for Exodus Passengers (Stations 12-14)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Return to Germany, the Country Responsible for the Holocaust ( Memento from June 21, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ www.wertheimer.info
- ^ Paul Silverstone Naval Historian, Geneoplogy
- ↑ On May 5, 2011 (temporarily?) No longer available. Found on April 24, 2013 in a destroyed state.