The Ottoman Legation Asks Washington to Stop Departures for Palestine
9 September 1898 to 13 September 1898
Palestine was then governed within the Ottoman Empire. [1]
On 9 September 1898, Ottoman minister Ali Ferrouh notified the State Department that his government prohibited foreign Jews from entering Palestine and had ordered officials to prevent their landing. Writing from the Ottoman legation in Washington, he asked the United States to stop groups of Jewish emigrants from departing for the province. He presented intervention before departure as a way to avoid disputes at the destination. [1]
Secretary of State William R. Day refused the requested restriction on 13 September. Neither the Constitution nor American law, he replied, authorized the executive to prevent departures on the grounds the minister had specified. Day offered a narrower response: he would make the Ottoman notice public so that prospective travelers knew of the difficulties they could face on arrival. The legation obtained a promise to publicize its warning while Washington declined to enforce the requested departure ban. [2]
Related Diplomats
Sources
- Ali Ferrouh to William R. Day
Document 1108, complete letter, published translation
Ali Ferrouh's letter, Washington, September 9, 1898 dateline.
Legation dateline, request, and signature
- William R. Day to Ali Ferrouh
Document 1109, note 9, complete reply; text continues on p. 1088
Day's reply, Washington, September 13, 1898 dateline.
Related Reading
Cite This Article
The Ottoman Legation Asks Washington to Stop Departures for Palestine. Chanceries Diplopedia. Record f3b91d6e135893335636. https://chanceries.org/research/history/ottoman-jewish-emigration-request-1898/