Aliyah Bet

Aliyah Bet - Illegal immigration, also called Ha'apalah, conducted at the initiative of immigrant groups in Europe, the Jewish Agency and in some cases with the help of the United States and even the Nazis. In Palestine, Aliya Bet was organized beginning in 1939 by the "Mossad l'Aliya Bet" to bring immigrants to mandatory Palestine after immigration was restricted by the British White Paper of 1939.

Illegal immigration began on  January 12, 1938, when the "Poseidon" brought 65 illegal immigrants who disembarked at Avihayil. At this time, the Jewish Agency operations were under the command of the Halutz department.  Up to 1938, about 8,000 Jewish immigrants had entered Palestine illegally, to circumvent quotas that were already in effect under British emergency regulations before the White Paper of 1939.

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