Foreign Minister Abba Eban told a press conference here today that Israel was neither disappointed nor surprised by the “tepid” resolution adopted by the Security Council yesterday calling on Israel and the Arabs to observe the cease-fire. The resolution marked the end of a session called at the urgent request of Israel last month in connection with the Egyptian commando raid across the Suez Canal Aug. 26 in which two Israeli soldiers were killed and a third was kidnapped. The document made no reference to Israel’s complaint.
“Disappointment presupposes some hope,” Mr. Eban said. “But Israel knew beforehand that the character and composition and shortcomings of the Security Council seal its lips and paralyze its hands.” He said that Israel’s complaint had a two-fold purpose – to make it clear to Egypt that Israel will not always be on the receiving end of incidents and to impress world opinion with Egypt’s guilt for the escalation along the Suez Canal. The Foreign Minister said that there were some members of the Security Council who wanted to state Egypt’s guilt in a resolution, “but the automatic Soviet support of the Arabs and the Big Powers’ unwillingness to become involved in a direct confrontation over the Middle East issue brought this attempt to nought,” he said.
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.
