Megillat Kfar Saba: The story of the exile to Kfar Saba, 1917-1918, by Menachem Y. Kloiner, Jaffa, Palestine, [1920]. Author’s signature.
77 pages. 15 cm. Private limited edition with the author’s signature on the back jacket.
In this rare booklet, Menachem Kloiner recounts the historic exodus from Tel Aviv. He, together with Meir Dizengoff, were the heads of the “immigration committee” of the exodus. During the First World War, the Ottoman government exiled the Jews from Tel Aviv. In the spring of 1917, they issued the decree that included all residents of Jaffa and the Tel Aviv neighborhood – but it was primarily upheld for the Jews. The Ottomans explained that the evacuation of the residents of the area was a protective measure in case the enemy attacked via the sea. But, they also claimed that the Jewish residents were liable to betray them and help the enemy penetrate the country. 10,000 Jews were exiled from Tel Aviv. Not in the National Library.
Menachem Yitzchak Kloiner (1885-1965) was born in an agricultural village in Europe. His family were Chabad chassidim. He studied in Vilna and under the Chafetz Chaim in Radin. He was a regular contributor to the Jewish newspapers in Europe. After immigrating to Palestine in 1914, he was active in business and the communal affairs of Tel Aviv. He was in charge of immigration and citizenship. Together with Dizengoff, he was in charge of providing for the needs of the Jewish exiles from Tel Aviv. When the exiles returned to their homes, Kloiner designed a white and blue flag to hang in their homes. This flag was chosen about thirty years later to be the flag of the State of Israel.
Original red jacket. Light tear without loss in jacket. Minimal, thin worming holes. Fine-very fine condition.