Letters
Churchill and Jews
02 September 2004
Dear Sir
Further to Jenni Fraser's feature, it is worth noting that Churchill's philosemitism continued well after 1948. He always reminded friends and colleagues that he was a Zionist, indeed one of the very earliest ones. He was quick to recognize the State of Israel, a brave act given the intransigent Arabist mentality within the Foreign Office. In the Suez Crisis, he made clear his support for Israel against 'her ill-treatment by the Egyptians' and urged Sir Anthony Eden to avoid Ernest Bevin's anti semitic excesses. He was never more prescient in regarding the IDF as the best trained army in the Middle East. More interestingly, Churchill called for Israel to be included in the British Commonwealth, no doubt heavily against the wishes of the Foreign Office.
Yours sincerely
Jeremy Havardi
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