Turkey, the Jews, and the Holocaust

Based on research in about fifty archives worldwide, Turkey, the Jews, and the Holocaust analyzes the minority politics of the Turkish republic and the country's ambivalent policies regarding Jewish refugees and Turkish Jews living abroad. Although Turkey stayed neutral during World War II, the country's policies proved crucial not only for the 75,000 Jews who lived in Turkey, but also to the 25,000 Turkish Jews living throughout Europe and the tens of thousands of Jews who desperately sought refuge in Turkey or transit to refuge elsewhere. Contrary to the official Turkish self-portrayal, this comprehensive study by Corry Guttstadt shows that Turkey was far from welcoming toward Jews during the Holocaust era.

Preface; Introduction: historical background; Part I. Turkey during the National Socialist Era (1933–45): 1. Turkey's foreign policy; 2. Nationalistic and repressive domestic policy - the regime of the Milli Şef; 3. The Jews in Turkey, 1933–45; 4. Turkey - a country for exiles?; 5. Turkey as a transit country on the way to Palestine; Part II. Turkish Jews and the Holocaust: 6. The bureaucracy of genocide and the role of the foreign office; 7. The fate of Turkish Jews in Germany and Austria; 8. France; 9. Belgium and the Netherlands; 10. Italy; 11. Southeastern Europe and the Aegean Islands; 12. The exchange of Turkish Jews from concentration camps; 13. Summary: rescue denied; Epilogue.

Corry Guttstadt is a lecturer in the Department of Turkish Studies at the Universität Hamburg and an independent researcher with a focus on Turkey.