Lieutenant Colonel E V Holding (1 results)

No Binding. Condition: Good. A secret report offering fascinating on-the-ground glimpses into the priorities and modus operandi of the British Special Investigation Branch (SIB) in wartime Palestine, Syria and Lebanon, its interactions with local communities, GHQ Middle East Forces, and French Mandate authorities. 11 variously sized sheets typed to rectos including the report and 2 signed letters. Good, folded, held together by a rusting pin, closed tears, loss to edge of final sheet (not affecting content). SIB included the Military Police and detective branches of the Royal Navy and RAF, staffed by senior NCOs and COs working in plain clothes or uniform. This describes an investigation into the black market in paper. REPORT ISB/1013 by Sgt Levy, SIB Beirut, for Assistant Provost Marshal (APM), SIB Syria and Lebanon Area, 6 Mar 1943, 3pp foolscap + (6)pp attachments stamped Secret. Levy received a message from SIB Jerusalem on 24/2 about the illegal disposal of 12,000 copies of Akhbar al Harb. On 25/2 Levy interviewed the informer and a journalist, identifying its sole distributor (Farajallah Freres) and its sub-agent in Beirut (Khodr Al Nahhas). He learnt that some copies were being sold to newspaper boys on the streets but not to bookshops and libraries. On 27/2 after "extensive enquiries" he confiscated issues from paper dealers. He found that Salim Miski in Souk el Munshieh had bought 260kg to make paper sacks naming his source and price paid. He found sacks made from Akhbar al Harb in another shop. He lists several libraries and bookstores that had not received copies. On 28/2 he interviewed the sub-agent Nahhas reproducing their "enormously out of proportion" distribution data here. On 1/3 he briefed British Press Liaison Officer Captain Ralphs who said there was only a discretionary verbal arrangement with Farajallah, referring him to Major Mitchel-Inness, Press Attache at the British Legation, whom he briefed. Levy questioned Wadim Sassine at Farajallah who bought Akbar al Harb for Alfred Massih, who told him to sell it to newspaper boys only. Massih confirmed this, describing how he illegally disposed of the rest for profit. One buyer, Farid Nabhan, intended to sell them in the mountains of Lebanon where they were not distributed. Levy confiscated copies from Nabhan's house, and learnt of his brother Elie's involvement. Levy then briefed Mr Gaulmier, Chef de Service d'Information Bureau de la Presse, who resolved to act against Elie. Levy updated Ralphs, who confirmed Farajallah was losing its distribution rights. Finally, he gave Massih and Sassine's details to be forwarded to the Bureau de la Justice Militaire for action. The attachments include statements by Sassine, Miski, Sarabi, Nabhan and Massih, and extracts from Farajallah's books. // LETTER 1: From Major P (-field?), APM, SIB Palestine and TJ to Lt-Col EV Holding, PR Officer, GHQ MEF, 15 Mar 1943, 1pp stamped Secret. Forwarding the above for action. // LETTER 2: Holding to DDPR (possibly Deputy Director PR), 20 Mar 1943, 1pp. Forwarding the above for action. An exasperated Holding says when he joined PR in 1942 he placed its publications on a sound footing by dealing only with recognised agents, but his advice to Arnold Smith to do likewise for Akhbar al Harb was ignored with the following result: "(Levy's report) discloses a most serious state of affairs. It appears that the agent responsible for the distribution buys copies in Cairo at the wholesale rate and they are sent to Beyrouth, but instead of these copies being sold to the newsagents for sale to the pubic, they go straight to the waste paper merchant and are sold to him in bulk at a profit. Here is an example of 'criminal waste' at its worst - brought about by gross neglect and incompetency. Not only is all this valuable material wasted, but the machine printing time could be used to print more 'Parade' which is now pegged because the machine is busy printing other paper". Holding was a technical advisor to Parade (Spink).