Sochnut

Sochnut or the Jewish Agency for Palestine was officially formed in 1929 to promote and facilitate Jewish life, education, government, and immigration in the Palestinian region under British administration. Between 1936–1948, Sochnut’s executive was David Ben-Gurion, who would later become Israel’s first prime minister. During WWII, Sochnut provided aid and visas to persecuted European Jews as well as organizing a significant amount of illegal immigration, exceeding the British quotas. After the state of Israel was established in 1948, Sochnut continued to organize and facilitate Jewish immigration into and settlement across Israel.