Thirtytwo commandos from what was then Palestine parachuted into Yugoslavia in the vain hope of making their way to Hungary to rescue Jews. their mission failed. Joel Brand. a Hungarian leftist Zionist. futilely tried to arrange an exchange with the Nazis of trucks for Jews. The Roosevelt Administration. prodded by Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr.. finally recognized the plight of the Jews and in January 1944 formed the War Refugee Board to work on a limited number of rescue projects. Ira Hirschmann. a delegate from the board. was sent to Turkey and. working with the International Red Cross. succeeded in getting thousands of Balkan Jews released from camps. The board also asked the Swedish Government if it would send a representative to Budapest whose special function it would be to aid the rescue project.