Selbstwehr

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SELBSTWEHR

SELBSTWEHR ("Self-Defense"), Jewish weekly founded in Prague. It was first published in 1907 and appeared regularly until the fall of 1938. After amalgamation with the Juedisches Volksblatt, a weekly published in *Ostrava, it was the most widely read Jewish newspaper in Czechoslovakia. Editors of the paper included Siegfried Katznelson, later manager of the publishing house Juedischer Verlag, Berlin; Leo Herrman, later general secretary of the Keren Hayesod, Jerusalem; Felix *Weltsch; and Hans Lichtwitz (Uri Naor; d. 1988), later of the Israel Foreign Ministry, Jerusalem. Among regular contributors were Max *Brod and Martin *Buber. Selbstwehr was the official organ of the Czechoslovakian Zionist Movement and the German-language organ of the Juedische Partei, which represented the interests of the Jewish minority in Czechoslovak internal politics. After World War iSelbstwehr also published the annual "Jewish Almanac", edited by Felix Weltsch and Friedrich *Thieberger, which dealt mainly with cultural activities in Palestine. The regular monthly supplement, Die Juedische Frau ("The Jewish Woman"), edited by Hannah *Steiner, was the official organ of Czechoslovak wizo. Selbstwehr had to cease publication after the Munich agreement.

[Uri Naor]