Israel forces in the Negev last night chased a large band of infiltrees back across the Egyptian frontier after a lengthy battle, an Israeli military spokesman revealed today. He said that the Arab force consisted of trained fighters. The infiltrees were caught trying to steal irrigation pipe, which it nearly always the sole object of raids by bands from Egyptian territory. Relations along the Israel-Jordan border continued to deteriorate today, despite the fact that the Arab Legion yesterday released four Israeli soldiers kept prisoner for three weeks, Arab troops on the other side of the frontier were today observed wearing battle helmets. The number of infiltrees from Jordan territory apprehended last week was 35.
Meanwhile, Israeli political circles confess that they are “perplexed” by the British Government’s assertion that it is delivering arms and jet planes to Egypt to help the Egyptian Government maintain internal security. They point out that Saturday “strong man” Premier Mohammed Naguib threatened publicly to “me Palestine!’ after he has cleared the British out of the Sues Canal area. These lame circles express the belief that the bellicose statements of Egypt’s dictator coupled with increased infiltration activity along Israel’s Gaza border prove that Egypt intends to use its new weapons against Israel.
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.
