Israel/Palestine

In June 1940, seventy-one percent of Americans thought Germany had already started to organize a fifth column in the United States. Roosevelt warned that even Jewish refugees could become a threat, aiding Nazi Germany in exchange for the lives of loved ones held hostage in Europe. The FBI warned Americans to be on guard.

The State Department instituted additional restrictions on immigration in 1941, citing national security concerns. Among these restrictions was the announcement that any refugee with close family still in enemy territory would be ineligible for a US immigration visa. American consulates closed in Nazi-occupied territory in July 1941, cutting off many applicants from the US diplomats issuing visas. At the same time, the State Department announced that all visa applicants had to be approved by an interdepartmental visa review committee in Washington, DC. This decision further delayed the departure of those refugees who had managed to make it to southern France or Lisbon, Portugal, the only places in Europe from which they could still escape.