AP News, November 1st, 2007
A ship carrying hundreds of Jews docked in the port city of Haifa Thursday after a short trip from Cyprus that partially retraced the route of the Exodus, a legendary vessel that symbolized Jewish yearning for a homeland in Israel after the Holocaust.
The passengers set off from Cyprus late Wednesday to follow part of the route taken 60 years ago by the dilapidated Exodus 1947 ship carrying more than 4,000 Jewish emigrants from southern France to the territory of the British Mandate.
In the years before the British gave up their mandate over Palestine in 1948 and Israel was created, thousands of Jews tried to enter against British orders. Many were fleeing Europe, where the Nazis killed 6 million Jews during World War II. Some succeeded in running a British blockade and escaping into the area's Jewish community, but others were caught and sent away.
The original Exodus, crammed with more than 4,500 Jewish passengers fleeing Europe, was seized by British authorities who then controlled the area. The vessel was towed to Haifa port on July 18, 1947. The passengers were shipped to a displaced persons camp in Germany. Some made further efforts to enter the territory and were sent to British internment camps in Cyprus.
Thursday's passengers traveled on a luxury Israeli cruise ship, The Royal Iris, and this time no one stopped them. The ship made the 165-mile journey as a tribute to the Exodus passengers, French trip organizer Pierre Besnainou said.
The Royal Iris entered Haifa bay accompanied by two Israeli naval vessels that sprayed the ship with water and waved to the vessel in tribute. The passengers then attended a welcoming ceremony with Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav and Zeev Bielski, head of the Jewish Agency, a quasi-governmental body that deals with immigration and Jews outside Israel.
"It was a very emotional experience. It was a very strong message to the world that nobody will ever succeed in stopping the Jewish people from returning to the land of the Jews," Besnainou told the Associated Press.
Passengers from France, Britain, Portugal, Italy, Hungary, the United States and other countries paid $2,600 for the symbolic journey, joined by a handful of original Exodus passengers including the elderly captain.
"I will shake their hand and try not to cry," said passenger Jose Carp, president of Portugal's Jewish community. "It's very moving and an honor to be participating in such an important event. ... The Exodus was first to break the barrier for other immigrants."
Carp was joined by his 24-year-old daughter Caroline, a musician who was making her first trip to Israel.
"I'm bringing my guitar along because that's part of who I am. ... I'll meet a friend in Tel Aviv that I met in London. We'll make music together," she said.
The 300 passengers flew to Larnaca, Cyprus, on two flights from Paris, and will spend five days in Israel, touring sites before meeting with Israeli President Shimon Peres, organizers said.
The trip was also envisaged by organizers as a build up to 60th anniversary celebrations from the founding of Israel in 1948.
About 40 passengers are using the voyage to settle permanently in Israel.
Among them were the Assimantou family, who left France.
"It's the only place I choose to put down my luggage," said Samuel Assimantou. "My grandfather lived in Ethiopia, he always wanted to go to Israel. ... I'm making his wish come true."
Assimantou, 37, said a move to Israel had been on his mind for years. His partner Isabelle, 42, agreed last September. The couple is traveling with their two daughters — 4-year-old Hannah and 1-year-old Ellie.
___
Associated Press correspondent Menelaos Hadjicostis contributed to this report from Larnaca, Cyprus.
