Israel Panner (1909 - May 1973), also known by the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

s Ike Rennap and Harry Robertson, was an Austrian/British writer and journalist. Active in Jewish and Communist circles, in 1934 Panner became secretary the

Jewish Colonization Association The Jewish Colonisation Association (JCA or ICA, Yiddish ייִק"אַ), in America spelled Jewish Colonization Association, is an organisation created on September 11, 1891, by Baron Maurice de Hirsch. Its aim was to facilitate the mass emigratio ...

in the USSR, and in 1935 was elected Secretary of the Jewish Labour Council. After serving in the army in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, in 1947 he became editor of the ''

Jewish Clarion Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

'' and in 1948, the London correspondent (as Robertson) of ''

Kol HaAm ''Kol HaAm'' ( he, קול העם, lit. "Voice of the People") was a Hebrew-language newspaper in Mandatory Palestine and Israel. It was initially published by the Palestine Communist Party and later by its successor, the Israeli Communist Party. H ...

''. He went on to work as a sub-editor for the ''

Sheffield Telegraph The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' is a weekly newspaper published in Sheffield, England. Founded in 1855 as the ''Sheffield Daily Telegraph'', it became known as the ''Sheffield Telegraph'' in 1938. History The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' was founded i ...

'' and the ''

Birmingham Post The ''Birmingham Post'' is a weekly printed newspaper based in Birmingham, England, with a circulation of 2,545 and distribution throughout the West Midlands. First published under the name the ''Birmingham Daily Post'' in 1857, it has had a s ...

'', before serving as chief parliamentary editor of ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' and author (as Ike Rennap) of Middle Eastern literature. Under this pseudonym, he wrote ''Antisemitism and the Jewish Question'' (1942). At this time, he falsely claimed

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

had protected Jews against

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

. As a Communist Jewish writer of the period, Panner was a subject of Security Service interest in the 1930s and 1940s. As documented in KV 2/2173 (1934-1947) he first came to the Service's attention through being mentioned in intercepted correspondence of other Communist targets, and was soon found speaking at meetings. His Intelligence file (File refs KV 2/2173-2174)Files of Jewish interest
MI5 includes a Special Branch report of his arrest for obstruction in February 1941 while he was engaged in trying to propagate Communist ideals in the confined spaces of the communal air-raid shelters in London's East End. Initially working as a stretcher-bearer for a London council, he was eventually called up in July 1942, and the file contains a number of the Special Observation Report Forms compiled on him by his senior officers. Typical of these is the one at serial 68a which describes him as being a "barrack room lawyer and given to grousing. Argumentative towards his fellow soldiers." Taken together these reports give a very full account of his (largely uneventful) military career. After demobilisation in June 1946, Panner returned to his journalistic work, and the Service continued to monitor his activities (as shown in KV 2/2174) until 1953.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Panner, Israel Communist writers Jewish writers Jewish socialists British male journalists 1909 births 1973 deaths Austrian emigrants to the United Kingdom