Haavara FAQs: How did Zionist leaders respond when Hitler rose to power in early 1933?

How did Zionist leaders respond when Hitler rose to power in early 1933?

One might reasonably assume that the Zionist leadership would have condemned Adolf Hitler's ascent to power and led the charge for the anti-Nazi boycott of German goods.

The reality, however, was the opposite:

JTA Sept. 3rd, 1933 Quoting Nahum Sokolow: "Hitlerism enables us to convert all Jews to Zionism."

Accommodation, Not Condemnation: Right from the start, the Jewish Agency was among the first to congratulate Hitler on becoming German Chancellor. They also assured him of their opposition to all anti-Nazi boycotts.

Condolences to Hitler: The Zionist leadership even sent Hitler a cable of condolences following the death of President Hindenburg in August 1934 (see The Seventh Million, p. 29).

Historical Condemnation: In a grimly ironic twist, Menachem Begin, in the early 1980s, publicly accused Labor Zionists of "treason" and openly called them "Kapos" for their actions.

Further Instances of Accommodation

Reinhard Heydrich on Zionism and how it's comparable to German National Socialism

Nahum Sokolow, the head of the World Zionist Organization, actually praised "Hitlerism."

German Zionists promoted the wearing of the yellow badge nine years before the Final Solution.

The renowned liberal author Emil Ludwig suggested that Jews should "build statues" for Hitler in Palestine as a sign of appreciation.

The Strategic Rationale

Despite foreseeing the "dangers" to Europe's Jewry decades before the Final Solution, the Zionist leadership did not choose to confront or resist Hitler's fascism. Instead, they sought accommodation by exploiting Nazi antisemitism to advance their political goal: the creation of a "Jewish state." This opportunistic tactic, as demonstrated by the maxim that "Anti-Semites Would Become Our Best Friends," is deeply ingrained within the Zionist ideology. Those were Theodor Herzl's marching orders, as we shall address shortly.

Spoiler Alert: Exploiting Jewish plight was described by David Ben-Gurion (the founding father of the "Jewish state") as the "LEVER" that could be employed in creating the "Jewish state"!

Leon Trotsky's Call for Resistance Contrasts with Zionist Jewry's Appeasement

Leon Trotsky, 1879 - 1940

As you consider the earlier facts, it is important to note the renowned Russian Jewish communist, Leon Trotsky, openly championed policies centered on resisting fascism. He did this well before Hitler's rise to the Chancellor in early 1933. Indeed, Trotsky authored significant works detailing strategies to defeat fascism; this historical fact remains accurate regardless of one's personal view of him.

Beyond the Zionists, who had foreseen the Holocaust decades in advance (see Catastrophic Zionism for details) and pursued trade normalization with the Nazis (known as the Haavara Agreement), Trotsky also foresaw the impending calamity. As Hitler became entrenched, Trotsky spoke of the urgency of rescuing German Jewry anywhere and criticized Zionists' state-first, Palestine-centric policy. He ceaselessly warned against the perils of appeasing Nazis and fascists. A prolific writer, Trotsky desperately and loudly warned of the coming catastrophe, not just for the Jews but for all humanity, right up until his assassination in August 1940.

Love it or hate it, only a few heeded his warnings; that is the honest truth.

What Was The Zionist Logic Behind Appeasing The Antisemites?

Herzl Died Thinking Israel Would Have Been in Uganda, not in "empty" Palestine

This approach, of appeasing the antisemites, was not a sudden reaction but, as our research below suggests, a long-standing strategy rooted in the directives of Theodor Herzl. Just decades earlier, Herzl's "marching orders" were to "never confront antisemites," predicting that Europe's antisemites would ultimately "become Zionists' best friends."Herzl's Marching Orders: The Political "Jujutsu"

Herzl is reported to have viewed antisemitism as a resource to be exploited, with no foreseen downsides. From the Zionist perspective, working with antisemites was seen as a political "win-win" scenario for both Zionist Jews and European antisemites, making a head-on confrontation seem foolhardy and counterproductive. Herzl's strategy was likened to the "art of Jujutsu but in politics," a belief held religiously by his followers, as detailed in The Transfer Agreement, p. 226.

However, this policy of appeasement and accommodation had tragic, unforeseen consequences. Many Zionists who adhered to Herzl's original directives later became collaborators, known as Kapos, who tragically enabled the efficiency of the killing machine during WWII. More information on this "deadly phenomenon" is available at the end of this section.

To prove our point, please contemplate what David Ben-Gurion said once he was done reading Mein Kampf in 1934, he declared:

Revisionists Boycott Poster

"Hitler's policy puts all the Jewish people in danger", Ben-Gurion hoped that Nazis' victory would become "a fertile force" for Zionism [what about for the Jews David, did you care about them!] (The Seventh Million, p. 18)

[What Ben-Gurion called the "fertile force" was the LEVEL (which he often spoke in the 1930s) that would create the "Jewish state."]

The same logic applies to Ze'ev Jabotinsky, who stated in early 1933:

"The Third Reich's policy towards the Jews calls for a war of extermination. It is being conducted in a way that exceeds the bounds of humanity."(The Seventh Million, p. 18) which Jabotinsky asserted two years later too.

Kastner Saved Lives Too: How does justifying Haavara after the fact not resemble Kastner's defense of what happened on his infamous train, but at a much larger scale? Kastner too saved Live!

[Ask yourself: What did Jabotinsky and his Revisionist followers do to confront Hitler? Here is how the fathers of "Jewish Nationalism" confronted the rise of fascism: Ze'ev (Wolfy) and his followers doubled down on fascism with Hitler's fascist mentor Mussolini! Wolfy did the same thing, but with his Polish fascist buddies before WWII. Revisionists were hardcore cynics, they were anti-Haavara only after Ben-Gurion and co. stole it from them first (see Haavara V1.0 by Sam Cohen)! Ironically, Jabotinsky attempted to replicate Haavara with Poland's fascists. But again, Ben-Gurion and Co. usurped it from him just before the war started!

Fast forward to the 1940s, Jabotinsky's followers were either reached out for alliance with the Nazis (as late as 1941), or bombed WWII war efforts while their families were being gassed in Poland! YES, two of Israel's future PMs (Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir) did exactly that during WWII. As you digest the earlier facts, keep in mind that Menachem Begin in the early 1980s used to describe the Labor Zionists as Kapos for signing the Haavara Agreement with the Nazis!

Dear Jew, mazeltov, on this lovely gift for humanity: Zionism!]

Why do you think Zionist Organizations are actively promoting "I Love Hamas" Stickers? How many similar schemes were done, and we are ignorant about who was behind them?

Here is another proof proving that what you read already was only the canary in the coal mine: Two years way before the 1938 pogrom, Ben-Gurion spoke forcefully in defense of the Haavara Agreement on December 11th, 1935. Note how he spoke of the destruction of German Jewry six years before the fact. Despite Ben-Gurion's assertion, he and other Jewish Agency Executives (JAE) allocated under 16% of the immigration certificates to German Jewry, many of those certificates were granted by the British Mandate in the first place:

Only Eretz-Israel can serve as a cure for German Jewry, even if not for all of them; any other "cure" is a false hope [Ben-Gurion was known to use another more expressive term: "Witch Doctor's Medicine"]. We cannot topple Hitler; perhaps he will be toppled some other way. We must be concerned with the fate of the children and women, who are choking in this destructive hell. There is one way to rescue them-- to bring them to Eretz-Israel, with their capital. Their capital -- that is, merchandise, and by this I do not mean French or English merchandise. The only question is whether the money will return to Germany. This is not German merchandise; this is Jewish capital, belonging to Jews who are going to their destruction ... we have no other honor except by rescuing Jews and bringing them to Eretz-Israel.'" (The Yishuv In The Shadow Of The Holocaust, p. 104)

[In a nutshell, those Jews who didn't immigrate to Palestine and chose to be saved somewhere else were as good as dead. Actually, in the Zionist literature, there is a name for this apocalyptic phenomenon: Catastrophic Zionism! Thus, what Ben-Gurion wrote in late 1935 was the canary in the coal mine and the prelude for what the Zionists did during WWII. In practice, the Zionists spent almost nothing on rescuing European Jewry! We examined the Jewish Agency's budget!]

How Did Zionists Show Their Affinity to the Nazis?

You would not think the Zionist movement could sink so low as to compare itself to National Socialism to impress Hitler, see The Transfer Agreement, see Zionists' letter to Hitler in the last paragraph on p. 175)

Fake Valor: Jewish-Brigade, Italy April - 1945: The Impostering Hero, see me while I bomb Nazis. We wonder: were any similar selfies taken at the al-Alamein meat grinder?

You wouldn't think Ben-Gurion & Co. could hoist Swastikas on their Haavara fleet?

You wouldn't think they did hoist the Swastika a year ahead of the German Navy?

You wouldn't think Zionist leaders could welcome wearing the yellow star of David nine years ahead of Hitler asking Jews to do so?

You wouldn't think Zionist intellectuals (who saw firsthand the dangers of the Nazis) could praise the "benefits of Nazism"? What the heck, even Emil Ludwig envisioned Jews erecting a status for Hitler in Palestine as a token of their appreciation!

You wouldn't think that such appeasing policies would prepare many of Europe's Zionists to work as collaborators (a.k.a. as Kapos) in the death camps and ghettos? God forbid, Zionists cannot sink that low, kissing up to the great leader!

Fake Valor: Why did two of Israel's future PMs, Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir, bomb WWII war efforts while their families were being gassed in Poland?

Here is Zionist Edwin Black quoting Jüdische Rundschau's (Jewish Review, ZVfD's official Zionist newspaper) letter to Hitler when he became the chancellor. Pay attention to how Zionists attempted to convey to the Nazis the similarities we outlined earlier between Zionism and National Socialism. Make sure not to skip Black's last sentence in defense of Zionists; he had to inject Hasbarah to make us digest treason as if it is actually "saving lives":

SS officer Leopold Von Mildenstein Inspecting A Zionist Kibbutz In Palestine During The 1930s

Jüdische Rundschau was free to preach Zionism as a wholly separate political philosophy-- indeed, the only separate political philosophy sanctioned by the Third Reich.

In 1933, Hebrew became an encouraged course in all Jewish schools. By 1935, uniforms for Zionist youth corps were permitted--the ONLY non-Nazi uniform allowed in Germany. When the Nuremberg Laws in late 1935 stripped German Jewry of their citizenship, it became illegal for Jews to raise the German flag; the same law, however, stipulated that Jewry could raise the Star of David-emblazoned Zionist flag.

Why did Great Britain indict two of Israel's future PMs on charges of terrorism? Those evil British must have been "Jew-hating" antisemites!

The ZVfD's quick success in lobbying the Zionist option to the Reich advanced the priority of their second imperative: convincing German Jewry to relinquish ten centuries of German national existence. But the bulk of German Jewry wanted another solution to their predicament.
They wanted to stay, even as second-class citizens--even reviled and persecuted. The hot springs and baths, the outdoor Konzerten of Bach and Mozart, the readings of Goethe, Oriental carpets on the floor, exotic fruits from Africa, a noble tradition they had fought for, died for, profited by. These people were integrated. They were Germans. They wanted to stay, even helots.

Adolf Eichmann on Zionism and how it's comparable to German National Socialism

Zionism said no. While mainstream Jewish organizations were frantically assembling theories and position papers suggesting a tapered-down but still (German national existence, the Zionists were doing the opposite. On June 21, 1933, long ZvfD memorandum was sent directly to Hitler outlining those Zionist tenets that were consistent with National Socialist ideology. For example: "Zionism believes that a rebirth . . . such as that in German tradition resulting from a combination of Christian and national values and national values, must also come about within the Jewish community. Racial background, religion, a common fate, and tribal consciousness must be of decisive importance in developing a lifestyle for Jews too. ... Zionism's objective is to organize Jewish emigration to Palestine in such a way that it improves the Jewish situation in Germany. ... Jewish settlement is based on agriculture. All productive work, be it of an agricultural, craftsmanship, or industrial nature, is performed by Jewish workers who are inspired by a new idealistic work ethics".

Look who is copying from Joseph Goebbels' propaganda playbook. Birds of a feather always flock together

The German Zionist memo to Hitler contained the obligatory appeal to Nazi prejudices about Jewish laziness and calculated comparisons between the two movements. This was the only way to converse with the Nazi regime. (The Transfer Agreement, p. 175)

[Do you think Mr. Black & Co. would find similar excuses to water down Mufti's action nine years later when he met Hitler in November 1941 (not 1933)! When Mr. Black wrote this hasbarah, he knew well that Zionist leaders at the time were BIG on eugenics and race theory. Isn't it obvious that both sides, the Nazis and Zionists, had ideological affinity? For the love of God, Zionists were even ahead of Mussolini kissing Nazis' behind!]

To be fair to Mr. Black, he wrote one of the best assessments of the Zionist mindset when Hitler rose to power:

During the first days after Hitler's boycott against Germany's Jews [early 1933], the Zionist movement's hierarchy in Europe and America was busy trying to plot a course of action. Their objective was not to mobilize Jewish and non-Jewish resources for the preservation of Jewish rights in Germany. Rather, they sought a means of turning the miseries of German Jewry into a new impetus for a Jewish Homeland in Palestine.

Kastner Saved Lives Too: How does justifying Haavara after the fact not resemble Kastner's defense of what happened on his infamous train, but at a much larger scale? Kastner too saved Live!

Zionist leadership had, in fact, refused to oppose the Nazi expulsion ideology from the outset. (The Transfer Agreement, p. 78-9)

[What Mr. Black articulated here is precisely how David Ben-Gurion described exploiting Jews' plight during the 1930s. David called the exploitation of Jewish misery the LEVER that would end up creating the "Jewish state." This LEVER was used during and after WWII ended in the DP camps to achieve the maximum possible leverage.]

Kastner Saved Lives Too: How does justifying Haavara after the fact not resemble Kastner's defense of what happened on his infamous train, but at a much larger scale? Kastner too saved Live!

Finally, you wouldn't think the founding father of the "Jewish state" could nudge Nazis into murdering Jews four years before the Final Solution? God forbid, the Zionist leadership wouldn't give Hitler ideas on how to murder Jews a month after the infamous Kristallnacht pogrom of 1938. You wouldn't think Ben-Gurion would sink that low by encouraging Hitler to get started on murdering the Jews two months before his infamous hate speech at the Reichstag. You wouldn't think the founding father of the "Jewish state" could foment Jewish pain and suffering, thus the Jews' plight would become the LEVER that would create the "Jewish state"? Well, be careful what you wish for. Please be seated. Here are the boring details from Ben-Gurion's official biographers, as it was cited by the NY Times.