Zionism in Morocco

Sam Abutbul was born in Morocco in 1923, and studied in Alliance schools. He was an active Zionist until his Aliyah. He mentions three Zionist youth movements: "Karl Netter", "Chovevei Zion" and "Yehuda Halevi". Almost all religious families were Zionist and prepared themselves for Aliyah. The Zionist Federation of Morocco was headed by S.D. Levi who also worked for KKL, and Paul Kalamaro and Maitre Cagan were also active. In 1943 or 1944 the Zionist Federation of France transferred to Morocco some entry certificates to Palestine, and those olim now hold important positions in Israel. Sam describes the activities of "Karl Netter" group, founded in 1937, of which he was secretary and active in sports, with the additional aim of creating nuclei for self-defence if necessary. He and one other comrade were trained by Hagana outside Morocco to become instructors. Then they participated in a 4-month course in Morocco, after which they organized Haganah in the whole country and took part in Aliyah Bet activities under the command of emissaries from Palestine. In 1947 3 ships left Morocco with about 1000 olim. Some olim from Morocco, Tunis and Algiers were flown to France and sailed from there. Thousands (including Jews from Tunis) crossed the border into Algiers, where conditions were easier because the country was under French control. He describes the various schemes by which they crossed the border, how this illegal emigration was organized and how there were Hagana instructors everywhere to ensure the safety of the Jewish communities. ; Following the establishment of the State of Israel, there were Arab riots in various places. On 7.6.48 there were riots in Oujda and about 40 people waiting to cross the border were killed and many more wounded before the French came in with tanks. The following days hundreds of Jews passed the border, as though nothing had happened. There were no official relations with the French, but they knew about the youth movements and requested that activities be carried out quietly in order not to provoke the Arabs. During World War II, after the collapse of France, German missions came to Morocco with lists of Jews who were to be arrested or killed. The Arabs cooperated with these missions, but luckily the American army reached Morocco sooner than the Germans expected. King Hassan II and his father King Mohamad V consistantly protected their Jewish citizens. Sam thinks that the Jewish authorities in Palestine were eager to save Jewish survivors in Europe and neglected the Jews of North Africa. So North African Jewish communities had to organize their own Zionist activities and prepare immigrants (both youth and families) for Aliyah. The first emissaries arrived in Morocco in 1944 and found a strong, organized Jewry prepared for Aliyah, some of whom had already gone to Palestine on legal certificates and transferred to Cyprus to deal with new arrivals. Holocaust Survivors who reached Morocco started businesses and refused to leave for Palestine until after the establishment of the state. Sam describes the contribution of Moroccan Jews to the security and economy of Israel, in spite of the difficulties of their absorption.