Eisenhower Keeps Door Open For Possible
U.S. .Sale of Defensive Weapons to Israel

Tripartite UN Effort Still
Major American Objective

(Continued from Page 1)
Other shipments are carried
by Polish and Russian freight-
ers and even by Bulgarian ships
operating in the Black Sea,
The shipment of 480 tons of
'machine guns and ammunition
was said to have originated in
Hungary.
Meanwhile, some 200 Czech
"tourists" have arrived in Cairo
and have even spread out to
Lebanon, Syria and Libya, de-
spite the fact that each "tourist"
carries. a new Czech passport.
None of them speaks Czech, the
report said.

_Ike Keeps Door Open
For Arms for Israel •

Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News

WASHINGTON. — President
Eisenhower on Wednesday held
open the possibility of U.S. arms
sales to Israel. He told a press
conference that the possibility
of the sale of munitions to Is-
rael had never been foreclosed,
and said that neither he nor
Secretary of State Dulles ever
stated the U. S. would not sell
arms to Israel.
Mr. Eisenhower pointed out
that American policy to-date
has been to avoid an arms race,
in the belief that the best
prospect for peace and security
lies in the United Nations. He
indicated that American inter-
ests in the Middle East would
be gravely jeopardized by an
Arab-Israel war, and cited the
Tripartite Declaration of 1950.
He revealed that UN action to
ease tension was one of the fac-
tors under intense study. The
nature of such action will be
publicized as soon as . it is for-
mulated, he said.
It was not clear from the
President's statement if the
Administration plans to give
more.favorable consideration to
Israel's application for arms, but
it was thought here that he left
the door open to - such a pos-
sibility.
Mr. Eisenhower said he has
Worked long hours on the Arab-
Israel question, often far into
the evening. The President re-
vealed that he participated in a
secret exchange of correspond-
ence with Soviet Premier Bul-
ganin on the Egyptian-Com-
munist arms deal. In October,
before the Foreign Ministers'
conference at Geneva, Bulganin
wrote the President that the
arms transaction with Egypt
was a pUrely commercial busi-
ness deal.

Eisenhower Confers On
Arab-Israel Problem;
Sends Largest U.S. Warship
WASHINGTON (JTA)—Pres-
ident Eisenhower discussed the
Arab-Israel situation with Act-
ing Secretary of State Herbert
Hoover, Jr., while the U.S. Navy
revealed that the supercarrier
Forrestal, the world's mightiest
and largest warship, will sail
for the Mediterranean to join
the U.S.. Sixth. Fleet there. A
battalion of Marines was or-
- dered to join the Sixth Fleet.
The Forrestal, a 70,000-ton
aircraft carrier, carries many
jet fighters a n d high-speed
bombers. Several of these
planes are supersonic and they
will be tested next month at
Norfolk, Va. At present the
warship is going through jet
plane training exercises in the
Caribbean. The ship probably
will not proceed to the Medi-
terranean before the end of the
summer, it was indicated.
The details of President Ei-
senhower's meeting with Acting
Secretary Hoover were not

32

—

Detroit Jewish News

Friday, March 16, 1956

made public. However, it is be-
lieved that one of the major
problems discussed was how the
Arab-Israel crisis could best be
brought before the United Na-
tions S e c u r i t y_ Council. The
President last .• week urged
"early" action by the United
Nations on the Arab-Israel
issue.
Robert S. Allen, noted
Washington columnist, report-
ed today that President Eisen-
hower is considering an ur-
gent "suggestion" from Brit-
ish Prime Minister Sir An-
thong Eden for the calling of
a Big Three ."summit confer-
ence," on'the deepening Arab-
Israel crisis, to take place in
London within a few weeks.
The French government, ac-
cording to Mr. Allen, strong-
ly favors the proposal but
the United States is cool to it.
Mr. Allen also reports that
most of the mail received by
the State Department during
the last two months favors arms
for Israel.

U.S. Will Not Send
Anti-Aircraft to Israel
The State Department indi-
cated that the U.S. Government
does not intend to supply Israel
with Nike anti-aircraft missiles.
A report published last week-
end said that the Joint Chiefs
of Staff favor the selling of such
missiles to Israel, but that the
final decision had been left to
the State Department. The Nike
missile is a purely defensive
weapon sought by Israel in this
country to counter the Soviet
jet bombers received by Egypt.
Israel Ambassador Abba Eban
sought clarification from Rob-
ert D. Murphy, Deputy Under
Secretary of State, on the in-
tent of President Eisenhower's
- recent statement that arms sales
to Israel would not insure Mid-
dle East peace because of Arab-
Israel •population differences.
The Ambassador said he drew
Mr. Murphy's attention to Mr.
Eisenhower's statement of Nov.
9, 1955, in which the President
said that the U.S. would con-
sider Israel's arms request. The
Ambassador said he inquired
if this statement by President
Eisenhower still stood or whe-
ther the recent statement nulli-
fied it.
Mr. Eban engaged in a verbal
duel with Syrian Ambassador
Farid Zeineddine on an NBC
television program called
"Youth Wants to Know" during
which four foreign students in
this country—two Israelis and
two Arabs—questioned the Am-
bassadors. Mr. Eban appeared in
full view of the television au-
dience separated from the Sy-
rian Ambassador by a specially
constructed partition demanded
by Mr. Zeineddine as a precon-
dition for his appearance on the
same program with the Israeli
Ambassador. Mr. E b an com-
mented on this "blockade" and
its meaning in terms of Arab
"h a t r e d" and opposition to
peace.

Arab Rulers Adopt "Plan"
Against Helping Israel
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The
State Department declined com-
ment on a communique issued
jointly in Cairo by Egyptian
Premier Abdel Nasser, Syria's
President Shukri Kuwatly and
Saudi Arabia's King Saud fol-
lowing their "summit" confer-
ence.
The communique 's a i d that
the Arab rulers had devised a
plan "ensuring Arab security,
preserving the structure of the
Arab nation and defending it
against the danger of Zionist
-aggression and foreign domina-
state of
tion which prevent
peace and stability from reign-
ing over the area, thus provok-

a

ing a state of tension and
threat."
The communique announced
that agreement was reached on
dealing with states which allow
their subjects to be recruited
by Israeli armed forces, as well
as toward states supplying
Israel with weapons.
.U.N. Truce Chief Refuses
To Investigate Egyptian
Troop Concentrations
JERUSALEM, (JTA)—United
Nations truce • chief Maj. Gen.
E. L. M. Burns rejected Israel's
demand for a UN investigation
of Egyptian troop concentrations
near the Israel border. He sug-
gested that UN observers be
given the right to investigate
both sides. Both parties, he said
had at a different times con-
tended that the other was con-
centrating troops and arms in
excess of armistice agreement
limits.
In a communique, Gen. Burns
demanded the introduction of
a "system of periodic visits" by
United Nations observers in the
demilitarized zones, with com-
plete freedom of movement in
these areas. The communique
was issued following a meeting
with Foreign Minister Moshe
Sharett who had asked a UN
investigation of Egyptian troop
concentartions in the El Auja
and El Arish areas. There is no
point in investigating one side,
Gen. Burns' communique as-
serted.
Commenting on the UN com-
munique, a _Foreign Ministry
spokesman pointed out that
there had been no Egyptian
counter-complaints alleging Is-
raeli troop concentrations along
the border. "To the best of our
knowledge," t h e spokesman
said, "there never were such
complaints."
Approve Military Rule
For .Arabs in Israel
Continuation of the system of
military government in certain
Arab populated areas of Israel,
including the all-Arab city of
Nazareth, was recommended by
a special investigating commit-
tee, but easing of some of the
military restriction was sug-
gested. The report was sub-
mitted to the Cabinet by a com-
mittee of three named by Pre-
mier David Ben-Gurion.
The report said that even
under military rule the Arabs
in Israel were better off from
the point of view of public
health, education facilities, so-
cial welfare programs and em-
ployment than inhabitants of
neighboring Arab states. At the
same time, the committee rec-
ommended the transfer of gov-
ernment district offices to Naza-
reth and the introduction of a
program to develop industry in
the city and to increase its
trade. The group also recom-
mended easing of travel restric-
tions.
T h e commission explained
that the fact that the grea'ter
part of the Arab population
lives on or very near. Israel's
long and vulnerable border has
made for a major security prob-
lem since the State of Israel
was established. Security con-
siderations have compelled the
Israel Government to prolong
military rule in these areas, in-
cluding the right to designate
"closed areas," impose curfews,
restrict movement and other
measures as circumstances re-
quired.
Guerrilla warfare, the com-
mittee report continued, had so
far prevented the abolition of
emergency controls; although
there had been some relaxation.
The committee found that the
existence of military authority
prevented open hostility by a
section of the population and
that military rule had assisted
the security situation. Finally, it
declared that military rule was
required to encourage and .sup-

port settlements established in
the border regions.
British Govt. to Follow U.S.
Policy on Arab-Israel Issue
LONDON, (JTA) — Britain
will follow the United States
policy on the Arab-Israel situa-
tion. Official circles pointed out
that the Tripartite Declaration
guaranteeing Israel and the
neighboring A r a b countries
against aggression is still the
basic policy of the British gov-
ernment.
At the same time, it was re-
ported in the press that the
British Government is now "re-
assessing" its Middle' East policy
and is posing the question
whether the Tripartite Declara-
tion can really prevent the out-
break of an Arab-Israel war.
Another question is whether it
is good policy to favor the Arabs
when Israel is the only demo-
cratic nation in the Middle East.

The Sunday Times published
today an exclusive interview
with King Hussein of Jordan
in which the monarch was
quoted as stating "we have no
intention of attacking Israel; all
we want is to put ourselves into
as strong defensive position as
possible." This, he said, was why
he had dismissed Lt. Gen. John
B. Glubb as commander of the
Arab Legion. Gen. Glubb, who
returned to London after his
dismissal by King Hussein, in a
letter to the Times of London
yesterday, advised the British
Government against "getting
tough" with Jordan and urged
that the British subsidy to' Jor
dan be continued.
Review Washing-ton Talks
Prime Minister Sir Anthony
Eden and French Premier Guy
Mollet expressed their desire
"to see an end of the Arab-
Israel conflict and the establish-
ment of a stable peace" in the
Middle East. They made this
statement in a communique.
issued after a day of conver-
sation between the two govern-
ment leaders.
The communique said they
had reviewed the Tripartite
talks currently going in Wash-
ington. The communique stress-
ed the importance of economic
action in the Middle East within
the framework of regional or-
ganizations to which either Bri-
tain or France belong.

Jordanians Kill One
Israeli, Several Wounded
TEL AVIV (JTA) —7 An
Israeli border patrolman was
killed and several other special
policemen were wounded in the
third outbreak of violence along
the Israeli-Jordan border in the
wake of the dismissal of Gen'.
John Glubb as commander of
the Arab Legion. This time, un-
like the other two incidents, the
Arab Legion rather than infil-
trators was involved.
Shooting first broke out when
a party of Israel customs officers
entered Barda village on the
border due• east of Hadera. The
village of Barda is cut in half
by the demarcation line. Le-
gionaires, in positions across the
line, opened fire on the cus-
toms officials in their vehicle.
When an Israel border police
unit came to the assistance of
the custom officers, the Jor-
danian troops turned their at-
tention to the police. The Israelis
returned the fire, whereupon
the Arab Legion brought up
heavy machine guns and mor-
tars. The engagement lasted
until the evening. Later, the
Jordanians fired on a bus near
Magal, wounding the driver.
Israeli officials announced
they had identified the dead
Jordanian infiltrator killed after
he and several other Arabs
murdered a settler at Noham, in
the Jerusalem corridor. The
police say he is Mustafa Sam-
ueli, called the "highway ban-

dit," was in the pay of the
Jordanian authorilles.

Lloyd's Visit Arouses
Wide Interest in Israel

Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News

TEL AVIV — Selwyn Lloyd,
British Foreign Secretary, ar-
rived here Tuesday to confer
with Israeli government leaders
on possiblities of an Arab-Israel
settlement.
Mr. Lloyd, who remained in
this country until Wednesday
morning, was received by For-
eign Minister Moshe Sharett,
who called him an "old friend,"
and a number of western diplo-
mats. After passing through a
guard of honor at Lydda Air-
port, Mr. Lloyd spoke to news-
men, then proceeded to Tel
Aviv and on to Jerusalem•where
he met with Premier David
Ben-Gurion and confered with
UN Truce Chief Maj. Gen. E. L.
M. Burns. He dined with Mr.
Sharett.
At the airport, Mr. Lloyd told
newsmen he had come to speak
with Israeli leaders, to explore
ways of keeping peace between
Israel and her Arab neighbors
and to study possibilities of a
permanent peace settlement. He
said his current tour of the
Middle East would be "incom-
plete" without visiting Israel.
Political circles were im-
pressed by his statement that
he had come to discuss peace
along "existing borders."
It was reported here that
French Minister Christian
Pineau would visit Israel next
month and also will go to Syria
and Lebanon.

Air Raid Shelters
Urged by Ben-Gurion

Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News

JERUSALEM — Premier
David Ben-Gurion made a per-
sonal appeal Tuesday to every
Mayor and head of Municipal
Council in Israel to begin work
immediately on construction of
public air raid shelters. The
Premier called each Mayor and
Council head by telephone to
press the, urgency • of his bid.
The government meanwhile has
already allocated building ma-
terials for this purpose and the
Ministry of Interior has appro-
priated funds for this "vital
project." Building should start
within a week.

Reds Aim at Arms Depot,
Arab Munitions Market

Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News

TEL AVIV—Communist sup-
plies of arms to Egypt have far
surpassed Egypt's M i l i t a r y
needs, yet additional arms trans-
ports are expected at Egyptian
ports shortly, it was reported
here Tuesday.
Explanations here of this
oversupply of weapons to Egypt
include the possibility that So-
viet Union plans to establish a
Middle Eastern arms depot in
Egypt or that Egypt is acquiring
more arms than she needs so as
to be able to act as a munitions
merchant for other Arab states.
It was learned meanwhile that
Czech shipments to Egypt in-
clude the famous "Katyusha"
rocket gun, an estimated 300
T-34 tanks, 50 Stalin tanks - and
possibly 50 Ilyushin jet bombers
capable of an altitude of 50,000
thousand feet far above range
of anti-aircraft guns. Bombers
are capable of delivering five
ton missiles.
These reports say that hun-
dreds of Egyptians are being
trained in Communist countries
and many Russian training
teams are teaching Egyptian
soldiers to use heavy guns and
tanks supplied by the Soviet
bloc. The bulk of the Egyptian
army has been moved into the
Sinai Peninsula, it is reported,
and has taken up aggressive for-
mations. The Syrian army aye-
has taken up border posii--;--
it was learned here.

