The precursor of the Community Council of Jerusalem (Va'ad HaKehilla) was established circa 1864 to represent the interests of the Jewish community to Ottoman authorities; beginning with Mandatory Palestine it dealt with British Empire authorities.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357959193_Hebrew_community_organizations_in_the_mixed_cities_of_Mandatory_Palestine_and_the_creation_of_the_Jewish_national_home_Anat_Kidron_Hebrew_community_organizations_in_the_mixed_cities_of_Mandatory_Paleshttps://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/Mazeikiai/VaadHakehila.htmhttps://www.researchgate.net/publication/232964356_Jerusalem's_Va'ad_Hakehila_during_British_rule_in_Palestine_1917-1948https://www.researchgate.net/publication/250180399_Women_as_Victims_of_War_The_British_Conquest_1917_and_the_Blight_of_Prostitution_in_the_Holy_City Dealing largely with neighborhood and civic matters such as taxation and local security, and more particularly interests of the old Yishuv community, members provided much-needed financial support for the Haganah during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in a drive run by Yaacov Pat at the initiation of member Rose Vitales. https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/viteles-rose
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