Historical Events of Jewish Immigration

Zionists were keen to increase the number of Jews coming to

Palestine.

But following the St. James Conference in 1939, the

British imposed limitations on Jewish immigration.

This change in British policy was met with opposition.

In 1940, a French-built ocean liner, Patria, was

at Haifa Harbor carrying 1,800 Jewish

refugees who had earlier arrived from Nazi-occupied Europe.

The British were deporting them to Mauritius.

To prevent this, the Haganah group planted a bomb on board

to

disable the ship. A large hole was blown into the side of the

ship, and some 260 people on board died when the

boat sank.

Details of this operation were disclosed 17 years later by the

Haganah member who had planted the bomb