ANOTHER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SHIP

Chronicle (Levin), 2 November 1946, Page 5

ANOTHER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SHIP

Press Assn.

RECORD NUMBER OFJEWS REACH PALESTINE AND ARE DEPORTED TO CYPRUS

By Telegraph

-Copyright

Received Saturday, 11 a.m. LONDON, November 1. Despite defiant screams and intermittent violence, 1400 Jewish refugees were transhipped from the San Dimitric to two British deportation ships in Haifa Harbour today for shipment to Cyprus. The San Dimitrio was reported to have left a Spanish port a fortnight ago, carrying the 1400 immigrants, which is the largest number yet to attempt to reach Palestine-. The vessel was sighted off Cyprus and the Royal Navy escorted it to Pa'lestine. The San 'Dimitrio was brought outside the harbour and lashed to a British mine'sweeper. She was listing so badly that the bottom plates .were visible.

A British naval rating said the Jews offered very little resistance, because the ship was in danger of sinking. Reuter's Haifa cori'espondent says that steel-helmeted Grenadier guardsmen supervised the transfer of the immigrants to the troopships Ernpire Heywood and Ocean Vigour. The first tliree ashore resisted violently. Oue woman was dragged the length of the gangway, screaming, "Let me go," in Polish, but the Resistance generally was slight. The Supreme Court in Palestine this afternoon issued a wrft of habeas corpus against the Chief Secretary to the Palestine Government and six other British officials to show cause why Walter Frank-

stein, one of the immigrants aboard ithe San Dimitrio, shculd not be jreleased. The writ, which was dis!patched to the port by special I coiriier, resulted from an action brought by a Jewish lawyer as a test case based on the view that the High Commissioner was not empowered to deport anyone from Palestine without trial. The officials named in the writ ire the Chief Secretary to the Palestine Government, Mr. H. L. Gurney, the former G.O.C. in Palestine, General Parker\, the InspcctorGeneral of Police, a senior naval office in -the Levant area, and the! officers commanding the Empire Heywood and Ocean Vigour, which both left Haifa for Cyprus carrying the 1400 refugees.