Reparations agreements between Israel and Germany will be passed by a large majority when it comes before the parliament, parliamentary circles here are predicting. Coalition members believe that there will be few among the opposition deputies voting against ratification.
The West German Government officially declared yesterday that although it desires to maintain friendly relations with the Arab countries, it will not yield to the Arab demands not to pay reparations to Israel. The government’s information bulletin said the payments to Israel and world Jewry represent a moral obligation to “restore our honor in the world and promote friendship with all peoples of the free world.”
The statement made by Egyptian industrialist Ahmen Ismail in Hamburg last week–that Egypt would boycott German goods if Bonn ratifies reparations agreements with Israel–should not be regarded as official Egyptian policy, Egypt’s Consul General said here today. He repeated General Naguib’s declaration that ratification of the agreement would not affect German-Egyptian relations although it would “hurt” Egypt’s “feelings.”
Ali Mohammed Aljabali, Yemen Commissioner of Trade, told newsmen here today that German-Israeli reparations agreements would not affect his country’s trade relations with Germany “because Bonn had concluded the agreements under pressure.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
