Members of the United Nations Security Council met informally today to seek agreement on a formula which would permit the Council to close the books on Israel’s complaint that Egyptian forces had violated the cease-fire agreement on Aug. 26 by ambushing an Israeli patrol in the Suez Canal area, killing two Israeli soldiers and abducting a third. Israel has asked for a condemnation of Egypt for the attack and Security Council action to secure the liberation of the abducted soldier.
Informed sources said there was little possibility of agreement on a resolution that would condemn Egypt for the attack and said that even if the necessary majority of nine could be obtained for such a resolution, it would not escape a Soviet veto. What will probably emerge, they said, is a “consensus” statement calling on both parties for strict observance of the cease-fire and closer cooperation with the Jarring mission. The statement, it was believed, might criticize Egypt for the episode, but in mild terms. The debate adjourned yesterday, without fixing a date for resumption, after hearing a demand from United States representative George W. Ball that both Israel and Egypt issue strict orders against violations to avert “a greater conflagration.”
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.
